Self-portrait 1935

Oleksa Novakivskyi, sometime in the early 20th Century, with what looks like oil on canvas, painted this self-portrait, and I can almost feel the painting coming into being through an act of observation, shifting and emerging through trial, error, and intuition. I sympathize with him. You know, there’s nothing more challenging than painting your own face. What was he thinking when he made it? The paint seems thinly applied except maybe for his hair and beard where he wanted to add some real texture. His eyes, though! They are so dark and intense. I wonder if he felt as self-conscious as I do when I look in the mirror to paint myself. But he persevered! And I see that in his shoulders; the white of his shirt really comes forward. And in his face, I see not just Oleksa but also echoes of Rembrandt and Van Gogh. Painters are always talking to each other across time, inspiring one another’s creativity. It's a conversation that embraces ambiguity and uncertainty, allowing for endless interpretations.