Mother and Child, 1930

Constant Permeke pictured the subject of mother and child in many of his paintings and drawings. The woman’s full body in Motherhood is reminiscent of the primitive sculptures of fertility goddesses. There is a notable contrast between the distinct lines of the face on the left and its more fully developed part on the right, which gives the impression of simultaneous side and frontal views. Permeke also used differing techniques for the mother’s body and for the child: transparent shades of colour alongside paint solidly applied, heavy outlines for the mother next to subtle drawing for the child. From the 1920s, Permeke regularly used this method, which is reminiscent of Picasso.