Portrait of Vera Fokine 

Zinaida Serebriakova painted this portrait of Vera Fokine employing oil on canvas, capturing her reclining figure against a backdrop of softly draped fabric. The pale skin tones of the subject contrast with the deeper blues of the curtains behind her. This colour dynamic structures the visual field, drawing our eye across the canvas. Serebriakova uses texture and form to explore the tensions between intimacy and representation. The undulating fabric and the sinuous lines of Fokine’s body create a sense of fluid movement, subtly destabilizing any fixed, singular reading of the artwork. The composition is carefully structured, with the body angled across the canvas to maximize our perception of its contours. This formal choice evokes the semiotic tradition, in which the artwork operates as a sign system, inviting us to decode its visual language. Note how this portrait challenges conventional categories of representation. It invites ongoing dialogue between the artwork, the viewer, and the broader cultural context.