Frank Burty Haviland 1915

Editor: So, here we have Modigliani’s “Frank Burty Haviland,” a pencil drawing from 1915. It’s a really spare portrait; the face is mostly suggested, the eyes are barely there. What strikes me is its almost melancholic feeling, a certain weight to the head. What's your read on this piece? Curator: I see it as a reflection of the artistic and social circles Modigliani inhabited. Haviland was, like Modigliani, part of the avant-garde scene in Paris. The drawing's incompleteness is key, I think. Consider the context of 1915—Europe was in the throes of war, artistic conventions were being challenged, and notions of representation were evolving. Editor: How does that inform how we should interpret the drawing? Curator: The sketch-like quality suggests a sense of immediacy and perhaps a deliberate rejection of academic portraiture. But why depict Haviland this way? What's being said about Haviland’s place in the bohemian world, or the artist's vision? Or is this more a comment on the traditional purpose and function of a "portrait?" It certainly has a strong visual impact within the scope of modernism. Editor: I hadn’t really thought about it that way before, seeing it more about Haviland and Modigliani's style rather than societal commentary. Curator: Well, they are connected, aren't they? An artist and sitter are both influenced by societal currents, especially in such turbulent times. This drawing shows, perhaps, art moving away from idealization, embracing something rawer. Editor: Thanks, I’ll remember that social context going forward. It makes me look at it in a different light now. Curator: Exactly! Seeing how art reflects and refracts societal change can be deeply enlightening.