Un vieux kirghize, Peyik, Sinkiang 1931

Alexandre Jacovleff made this portrait on paper in 1931. It’s like he sketched the face of this Kirghiz man with dry, earthy pigments. The lines and shapes are built up slowly, almost like layers of sediment accumulating over time. I love how the physical properties of the medium—the paper's slight texture, the chalky feel of the pigments—play such a big role. Look at the beard, it's made of these tiny, almost frantic strokes that create this halo around his face. I get the sense that Jacovleff wasn't trying to erase the process, but to celebrate it. He's saying, "Here are the marks, here's the making; this is how I saw him." It makes me think of Lucian Freud, with his raw, unflinching portraits. Both artists seem to be searching for something deeper than just likeness. It's like they're trying to capture the weight of a life, the history etched into a face. Art is a conversation, isn’t it?