Zittende vrouw, naar rechts gewend 1886 - 1925

This etching, "Zittende vrouw, naar rechts gewend" or "Seated woman, facing right", was made by Ernest Haskell sometime before 1925. It's a small portrait, almost a study, rendered in delicate lines of drypoint. I can imagine Haskell hunched over the plate, pulling the needle across the surface, building up tone and texture, thinking, "How can I capture her essence with so little?" There’s a softness here, a certain romanticism in the way he describes the fall of light on her hair, and the gentle curve of her neck. It reminds me of some of Whistler's portrait etchings. There's a vulnerability to the woman that comes through in the slight downward gaze. It's as though she is caught in a moment of introspection, or perhaps just a bit tired of posing! Haskell is speaking to us across time and space; he is reminding us that portraiture, even in its simplest form, can be a powerful form of connection.