Self-portrait 1932

Istvan Farkas made this self-portrait with watercolor and crayon, and you can almost see the moment of contemplation as he works. I like to think of the studio as a place of inquiry, and you can feel that here. Look at the way he’s used color to create the sense of depth, how the blues of his face and suit are offset by the peach tones of his skin and the warm background. The lines around his eye, the corner of his mouth; they speak of someone who is both present and also retreating into himself. What was he searching for as he looked at himself? What was he trying to resolve? It’s not just about what he sees in the mirror, but the way he translates it onto the page, the way he makes marks. There’s something incredibly vulnerable about sharing that process, and that vulnerability is something that connects all painters. We’re all wrestling with the same questions, the same desires, and the same fears.