Studies van handen 

Thérèse Schwartze made these studies of hands with graphite on paper, and the humble materials are part of the point. Hands, of course, are themselves tools. We use them constantly in our work, and this sheet of studies shows Schwartze thinking hard about their form and function. You can see the pressure of the artist's hand as she coaxes the graphite to describe subtle anatomical structures and how light falls on skin. These are working hands, captured with a sculptor's sensitivity to volume. The drawing belongs to a long tradition of artists using sketching as a method of understanding the world, but it also elevates a seemingly mundane subject, implying that every kind of labor deserves close attention. Schwartze’s work reminds us of the inherent dignity in skilled hand work, which are crucial to the creation of any artwork, blurring the lines between art and craft.