Schwestern c. 1930

Karl Wiener made "Schwestern" with what looks like pastels or crayons on paper. The process feels direct, immediate; you can see the strokes, the way he builds up the color. There’s something very touching and a little awkward about the shapes of these women. The one in front is wearing a bold red and green top, and beside her the other woman has a more subdued, brown coat. But it's the way he shades around their faces that gets me: he's not trying to make them look pretty, he's interested in something else, maybe their inner lives, maybe a feeling of quiet observation. It reminds me a little of Kirchner's street scenes, where the figures seem caught in a moment of isolation. And like a lot of expressionist painting, it's more about conveying feeling than showing off. The piece embraces ambiguity and it’s up to us to bring our own experiences to it.