Thoughtful woman 1936

Mikuláš Galanda made this drawing, Thoughtful Woman, with black ink and grey pencil, and you can see it really is a work of pure thought. I think Galanda was probably thinking about the language of Cubism when he made this, its syntax of geometric shapes, and how that can be used to build a face, a figure. I wonder what music he was listening to? Or what conversations was he overhearing? There is something so personal in the pressure of the pencil, the way you can see where the artist was pushing. It feels like he was working hard to think, to find the best forms and lines to articulate not just a woman but her contemplation. The black is so dense and almost violent, while the pencil is soft, caressing, gentle. It’s a conversation between the elements, pushing and pulling, that creates a complex portrait of a moment of reflection.