Head of a Woman c. 1911 - 1912

Here's Modigliani's 'Head of a Woman,' carved in stone. The stone itself has a story to tell; you can see the artist's process in the rough texture and the chisel marks. There is a certain beauty in the imperfection of this piece. The stone feels almost like skin, doesn’t it? The shapes are simplified, but that just makes them more powerful. I keep thinking about the elongated face, the way it stretches upwards – it is like Modigliani is reaching for something beyond the physical world. And if you look closely at the hair, you can see it hasn't been smoothed or polished but left with this wonderfully raw texture, almost like a field of stubble. It reminds me of Brancusi's sculptures; the way he pared things down to their essence. But Modigliani brings a kind of haunting humanity to his forms. Art is such a conversation, isn’t it? Each artist picking up where another leaves off, adding their own voice to the mix.