Perna village 1943

Alfred Krupa made this drawing of Perna village in 1943, and it feels like a memory surfacing. The sienna colour and the sketchy marks suggest the passage of time and the layering of experience. Look at how Krupa builds up the image with delicate lines, a bit like whispering. It’s not about capturing every detail, but about evoking a feeling, a mood. You can almost feel the sunlight filtering through the trees, the stillness of the village. It’s a very physical thing, drawing – the pressure of the pencil, the way it glides across the paper. There’s a directness and immediacy to it, like capturing a fleeting thought. The way the lines create a sense of depth, drawing you into the scene, reminds me of Samuel Palmer, who was able to create a very particular, intimate atmosphere in his landscape drawings. Ultimately, art is about having a conversation, not about having the last word.