With his notebook on his lap and his pen in his hand, Marcel Gromaire does what he calls his " steps ". In the manner of a morning ritual, an exercise to warm up the gesture, he draws women. Carnal, sensual and without modesty, they contrast with his paintings of landscapes, warriors and workers. "The sketches accumulate, but only a few are kept and then signed, considered by their author as finished works. Favouring ink over graphite, they bear witness to the extreme sensitivity of this erudite and instinctive artist." Marcel Gromaire, Exposition au Musée de Cateau-Cambressis, 2018.