Girl Wearing a Kokoshnik and Pearl Choker 1890

Léon Bakst made this watercolor painting of a woman wearing a Kokoshnik and pearl choker. The diaphanous quality of watercolor lends itself well to capturing the fine details of her garments. Her Kokoshnik headdress and pearl choker suggest a relation to the world of craft. These kinds of adornments are often made through meticulous handwork, not the mechanized world of industrial production. The fur trim, embellishments, and pearl choker are all indices of labor, suggesting the skilled hands needed to create the overall image. The use of watercolor as a medium is also significant: it is a traditional art material often associated with sketching and illustration, but in this context, it becomes a means of elevating the status of the sitter. Understanding the materials and making of this piece allows us to appreciate Bakst’s ability to engage with both the fine arts and the craft traditions of his time.