Bildnis eines bärtigen Tscherkessen 

Theodor Horschelt painted this image of a bearded Circassian with oil on paper. At first glance, the most striking aspects are the interplay of light and shadow and the textural contrasts achieved with the artist's deft handling of paint. The composition is dominated by warm browns and muted flesh tones that give the portrait a sense of earthy realism. The painting's structure invites an exploration into semiotics. The beard, rendered with bold, broad strokes, functions as a signifier of masculinity and wisdom within certain cultural codes, and how this challenges fixed meanings. In the context of 19th-century Orientalism, the portrait may engage with prevailing representations of the 'exotic' other, thus intersecting with discussions of power dynamics and representation. But the unfinished nature of the piece also destabilizes these categorizations. The blank space around the figure encourages the viewer to consider the gaps in our understanding of the subject. The interplay between presence and absence, the defined and undefined, prompts a continuous re-evaluation of the artwork.