Modelstudier. Skitse til Slagelse-fresken "Den barmhjertige Samaritan" 1930 - 1936

Niels Larsen Stevns created this model study sketch for his Slagelse fresco, “The Good Samaritan,” using pencil on paper. Look at how the rapid, confident marks delineate the figures; it’s like he's thinking with his hand, letting the charcoal flow as he visualizes the composition. The texture of the paper peeks through the lines, giving the sketch a raw, immediate feel. Notice the density of the marks around the figures' heads and the drapery. The strokes vary, with some areas softly shaded and others more boldly defined. The way he layers these lines creates depth and a sense of movement. The parallel hatch marks behind the figure almost create a cage, but the openness of the linework keeps it from feeling too oppressive. It’s almost like he is nodding to abstraction, where the essence of form is conveyed with minimal information. This reminds me of the early sketches of someone like Phillip Guston, where he's trying to find the underlying structure of a form with deceptively simple lines.