Portrait de Lady Michelham 1905

Jacques-Émile Blanche painted this portrait of Lady Michelham, and it looks like he was really exploring how to capture a person’s presence on canvas. The paint handling here is so interesting; it's not about perfect realism, but more about feeling. Take the dress, for instance: the way the light catches the folds, it’s all built up with these gestural brushstrokes. There’s this great back-and-forth between opacity and transparency, like he’s building the image layer by layer. And the palette! It's muted, but those little pops of gold jewelry around her face give her a glow. Looking at her hands, you can almost see him figuring it out as he went along. Did he use a rag to wipe away paint to reveal the texture of the canvas beneath? These hands are so expressive! It’s like he’s saying, art isn’t just about showing what’s there, but finding something new in the process. It reminds me a little of Manet. Both artists knew how to balance capturing a likeness with exploring the material of paint itself, making each brushstroke count.