Portrait of Constantin Meunier 

This is Max Liebermann's charcoal portrait of Constantin Meunier. The composition is dominated by tonal contrasts that model form. The artist employs a range of charcoal marks to create the illusion of depth and texture, emphasizing the sitter’s rugged features. Liebermann adeptly uses chiaroscuro, the interplay of light and shadow, to define Meunier's face and beard, drawing our eyes to his thoughtful expression. The seemingly unfinished quality, the sketch-like nature of the drawing, isn't a flaw but a deliberate aesthetic choice. It mirrors a broader artistic interest in the "fragment" and the "incomplete," challenging traditional notions of artistic perfection. Consider the influence of contemporary philosophy. Thinkers questioned fixed meanings and absolute truths. Liebermann's portrait engages with this intellectual climate by presenting us with a study rather than a finished representation, inviting us to actively participate in the construction of meaning. The drawing’s open-ended nature reflects the modernist impulse to destabilize established meanings, values, and categories.