Obsession
1894
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1894
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
This sketch shows a woman in a long, flowing dress standing against a dark background. Above her head float a skull, a snake, and a ghostly face with wide eyes. The lines are soft and smudged, like pencil on paper. The weird mix of creatures might hint at a story—maybe fear or dreams. The artist used shading to make the figures pop against the black, which looks like a technique called *chiaroscuro*. Next, check out chiaroscuro to see how this play of light and dark works.
