Self-Portrait 1918

This is a self-portrait by Magnus Enckell, painted with what looks like thick oil paint. The marks feel intuitive, almost like he’s feeling out his own face. Enckell’s skin tones are built from strokes of pink, green, and yellow, a real dance of color. The marks are confident, almost like he's carving the image from the surface. Notice how the background is not just a flat wash but an active field of oranges and greens, pushing forward and creating this really active space around his head. Look closely at the way he renders the collar of his shirt, these cool daubs of paint, sitting right against that blue of his jacket. There's something about the way he simplifies the forms, the directness of his gaze, that reminds me of Paula Modersohn-Becker, who was also making portraits with this kind of raw honesty around the same time. It reminds you that painting is a conversation across time. A way of seeing.