Self-portrait 1910

Zinaida Serebriakova made this self-portrait with pastel on paper, and the medium itself feels so right for the subject. Pastel is all about immediacy. It captures a fleeting moment, like a glance in the mirror. It's so direct - pigment straight onto the surface. And Serebriakova uses that to her advantage. The blue strokes that define her robe aren't about perfect representation; they're about the feeling of light, shadow, and the soft texture of fabric. Look closely at her face, at the marks around her eye. The marks aren't blended perfectly; they retain a sketchy, searching quality. It's like she's not just showing us what she looks like, but also the act of trying to see herself. It is a great use of line and color. Thinking of other artists who have made self-portraits, I can't help but think of Paula Modersohn-Becker, who also uses a very similar palette. Both artists embraced the ambiguity of seeing and being seen.