The Lady in the Yellow Blouse 1910

Robert Falk painted "The Lady in the Yellow Blouse" in oil, and it feels like he’s really thinking through the painting as he's making it. Look at how the yellow of the blouse pushes forward against the grey-ish background. The paint isn't trying to hide itself here. You can see the brushstrokes, how he's layered the colors, like he's building up a sculpture. I love the way he painted her hands – one reaching out, almost like she's offering something, and the other resting in her lap. There's a tenderness in the way he captures her, but also a kind of distance. Falk reminds me a bit of someone like Alice Neel, in that he's not afraid to show the raw, human quality of his subjects. These aren’t idealized portraits, they feel like real people, caught in a moment of reflection. And that, for me, is what makes art so exciting - it’s never just one thing, but a conversation between the artist, the subject, and us.