Young Girl Leaning on her Elbow 1887

Editor: This is "Young Girl Leaning on her Elbow" by Berthe Morisot, painted in 1887 using oil paint. I am struck by how unfinished it feels, but the girl's face has so much personality! What do you notice in this piece, especially about her style? Curator: The fragmented brushwork immediately grabs the eye. Notice how Morisot uses rapid strokes of color, almost gestural, to create form. The unfinished areas aren't a deficit but rather part of the painting's formal strength. Consider the girl's gaze. It is not directly engaging, instead tilted with a sense of reverie, further brought about through color blending of the features and complexion. This enhances a feeling of spontaneity, crucial in Impressionist methodology. How do the brushstrokes contribute to this effect? Editor: The looseness definitely makes it feel more in-the-moment and casual. The visible brushstrokes create texture, they're almost like individual marks of color layered on top of each other. Curator: Precisely! It emphasizes the two-dimensionality of the canvas. Morisot avoids illusionistic depth in areas, opting instead to showcase the materiality of the paint itself. Do you think her deliberate compositional choices subvert traditional portraiture of that period? Editor: Yes, definitely! Portraits were typically very posed and idealized. The asymmetry of the composition and the undone aspects make it seem so different. I never really considered that these 'careless' features could have a formal intention to focus on brushwork and light effects. Curator: Exactly, she embraces fragmentation and imperfection and explores form and color. Her technique is her voice! Editor: That's fascinating. I see that in a totally new way now! Thank you.