Portrait study of a little girl 1919

Tadeusz Makowski made this oil on canvas portrait study of a little girl, and I think it's really about the act of seeing itself. There's something about the layering of ochre and green, pink, and brown which creates a complex surface texture, like a map of the skin. These earthy tones aren't trying to trick us into thinking we are looking at real flesh, but are evoking the memory of a real, lived body. Look at how the fine crackle in the paint suggests the play of light and shadow on the surface of the face. It’s like an old photograph that's been folded up in your wallet for years. I am reminded of Paula Modersohn-Becker, another painter interested in the emotional potential of earthy colours. Maybe it suggests that what we are seeing is less about a specific likeness, and more about the enduring power of paint to create an echo of life.