The Zouave 1888

Editor: Here we have Van Gogh’s “The Zouave,” made in 1888, held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It's a colored pencil drawing, almost like a print because of its flatness. Something about the guy's stare is just intense, like he's daring you to judge his rather flamboyant uniform. What strikes you when you look at it? Curator: Oh, the Zouave! He always reminds me of a stage play, doesn’t he? The intensity, as you mentioned, but also the deliberate costume. Van Gogh had this wonderful, slightly manic energy, pouring all his emotions into those clashing colours. I see him wrestling with finding beauty in the mundane. It’s not just a portrait; it’s an attempt to find the exotic, the theatrical in the everyday soldier. Do you get that sense of performance too, almost as if the subject is slightly aloof from his environment? Editor: I do, now that you mention it! It’s like Van Gogh saw him as more than just a soldier, but as this almost performative figure. The colours definitely amp up the drama. Curator: Precisely! Think of how he’s using those complementary colors: the red fez against the green background. They vibrate with life. Van Gogh was, as usual, digging beneath the surface, not just portraying the Zouave, but almost mythologizing him, would you agree? Editor: Yeah, he is immortalizing him. It's interesting how he made the guy seem more important than he probably felt. I am leaving with a new impression of how emotion informs our experience of portraiture. Curator: Exactly. Art reflecting and shaping our perceptions. These are the subtle stories each artwork wants to share.