“Stop and observe the intense gaze and dramatic lighting in this charcoal portrait. It's a powerful example of Ottilie Wilhelmine Roederstein's skill in capturing human presence with expressive simplicity.”
A powerful, almost sculptural head emerges from the cream wove paper in this untitled charcoal and graphite drawing. The artist, Ottilie Wilhelmine Roederstein, uses strong contrasts of light and shadow, along with erasing, to give the figure a striking presence. The gaze is direct and intense, drawing the viewer in, while the broad strokes and smudges of charcoal create a sense of immediacy and raw emotion. Though the subject remains anonymous, the work feels deeply personal, a testament to Roederstein's skill in capturing character through expressive line and tone. This drawing, created near the end of her career, showcases her lifelong focus on portraiture and the human form, rendered with a directness that was characteristic of her approach.
- Artist
- Ottilie Wilhelmine Roederstein
- Medium
- Charcoal and graphite, with erasing, on cream wove paper
- Location
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Dimensions
- 66.3 × 51.2 cm (26 1/8 × 20 3/16 in.)
- Collection
- Prints and Drawings
- Culture
- United States
- Credit line
- Adelaide C. Brown and Wilhelmine F. Coolbaugh Funds
What to Notice
Five details hide in plain sight. Here’s where to look.
The intense, direct gaze of the figure.
The strong contrasts created by charcoal and graphite.
Subtle areas where erasing has lightened the form.
The way the shoulders and neck emerge from shadow.
1 more detail is waiting.
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Ottilie Wilhelmine Roederstein
1859–1937 · SwitzerlandOttilie Wilhelmine Roederstein, a German-Swiss painter, defied social norms to become a celebrated portraitist, exhibiting at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition.
Further Works by Roederstein
The Forge of Vulcan
1919 · Art Institute of Chicago
Emperors Charles V and Ferdinand I
Art Institute of Chicago
Woman with a Harp
Art Institute of Chicago
Study for In Puerperium: Charlotte with Wilhelmine
1909 · Art Institute of Chicago
Hotel by the Walchensee, from The Walchensee
1920 · Art Institute of Chicago
Self-Portrait
1920 · Art Institute of Chicago
Wilhelmine in a Bathing Costume
1924 · Art Institute of Chicago
Landscape with Cannon (The Great Cannon)
Art Institute of Chicago