Female Portrait 

This is a portrait of a woman, made with oil on canvas by Konstantin Makovsky. The materiality of paint is very much present, and the way in which the image is built up from brushstrokes. It is in effect a mass production process, one suited to portraiture of people who could afford it. The paint is not merely descriptive. See the reds in her vest or shawl or jacket. You could say that they are realistic. But more importantly, the color is there to make the surface engaging. It's important to remember the immense labor required to produce paint in this era. Pigments were sourced from around the world, ground by hand with oil, and mixed to achieve the desired consistency. The canvas itself was carefully prepared, stretched, and primed. So, when we look at this portrait, we're not just seeing a likeness, but also the culmination of extensive material and human resources, challenging the traditional divide between fine art and craft.