“The person sitting in front of me is a mountain of life, all their alarms, all their passions, all their sadness must become part of me”

—Leon Kossoff

Leon Kossoff’s work, and his figural studies in particular, have often been remarked upon for their brooding existentialism. Demonstrating a considered level of craftsmanship, Kossoff’s compositions are often rendered as vulnerable entities in a dramatically executed setting. The present example is no exception. Indeed, as the figure appears to wrestle with their surroundings, the darker side of the human condition is evoked as is the collective experience of the post-war psyche.