A Blond Wearing Earrings 1916

Modigliani made this portrait of a woman with paint on canvas. She’s got a long face and neck, almond eyes, and wears a patterned top. Her hair is a frizzy halo and she has little pearl earrings. I wonder, was she a friend of his? Did she sit for him? What did they talk about while he painted? I love the asymmetry of the eyes. It’s a beautiful thing to see. They’re like tunnels into her inner world and it makes me want to get to know her, makes me wish I could reach into the painting to learn her secrets. The dark background is built up with so many layers of thin paint that it almost feels like you could touch it. The painting is full of the kinds of marks that are also feelings. What I see in this painting is him seeing her. I guess that's what all portraits really are—someone seeing someone else. He shares his vision with us, so we can see her too.