Portrait of Jadwiga Sapieżyna née Sanguszko 1910

Olga Boznanska made this muted portrait of Jadwiga Sapieżyna in oil paint. It's all about mood, like a memory fading at the edges. The colors are somber, a symphony of grays and blacks, but notice how the ochre of the chair back emerges from the darkness. The paint is applied in loose, visible strokes. You can almost feel the artist building up the form, layer by layer. The hands, clasped in her lap, are rendered with particular care, the rings glinting with a quiet elegance. It’s like Boznanska is saying, "Here's the person, in all her complexity, made of color and light and shadow." I’m reminded of Whistler, who was also interested in capturing a mood more than a likeness. Ultimately, this painting is less about who Jadwiga Sapieżyna was, and more about how we see, how we remember, and how art can hold those fleeting moments.