Nude Youth Seen from the Back

Along with his fellow German Expressionists, Kokoschka was deeply interested in conveying the inner workings of an individual’s spirit and mind through the depiction of his or her physical features. When studying the human figure, Kokoschka preferred to work with prepubescent children, writing that he sought out models that were as thin as possible, especially children who work in circuses “because you can see their joints, sinews and muscles so clearly, and because the effect of each movement is modelled more emphatically with them.” In this image, Kokoschka creates a contour drawing of a young girl whose gangly limbs evoke a sense of dynamism and potential for movement. While the figure assumes a pose that reads as adult, her slim hips and adolescent awkwardness reveal her young age.