Surrealistic Portrait 1947

David Burliuk made this Surrealistic Portrait with oil, its date is unknown. Look closely, and you'll see how the colors aren't blended so much as laid down next to each other. I get the sense Burliuk’s process here was one of accumulation, of slowly building up the image through discrete marks. There's a rough quality to the surface, especially in the background landscape. It’s like he’s scumbled the paint on, giving a real sense of texture. The colors, they’re earthy, but with these surprising pops of red in her lips and the patterned shirt. My eye keeps going back to that landscape, those tiny figures and horses. It’s like a dreamscape bleeding into a portrait, the unconscious mind finding its way onto the canvas. It reminds me a bit of Chagall. Both were exploring the way the world exists in our imaginations as much as it does in reality. Ultimately, art is a conversation and a connection, across time and place.