Portret van een vrouw 1866 - 1939

Bernard Willem Wierink made this “Portret van een vrouw” using what looks like black ink on paper. It’s a small portrait, just a little bigger than my hand. I love how the artist rendered the woman's curly hair. Each coil seems carefully considered, capturing a sense of movement and volume, as if she’s caught in a breeze. I imagine Wierink, his brow furrowed in concentration, carefully inking each line, coaxing the image into existence. And that heavy, black ink! It’s got such a graphic quality; it looks like he built up the shadows to give the portrait weight. Maybe he was thinking about printmaking techniques as he was making it? Anyway, the painting feels like a conversation between realism and abstraction, with the woman's face emerging from the darkness. The gesture feels both intimate and bold. It reminds me of other portrait artists like Alice Neel, who also captured the essence of their subjects with such directness and intensity. Artists are always riffing off each other, you know?