Portrait of Woman in Yellow Hat 1930

Kazimir Malevich painted "Portrait of Woman in Yellow Hat," probably sometime in the early 20th century, using oil on canvas. He uses the paint almost sculpturally, each brushstroke building up a surface that’s less about representation, and more about… well, what *is* it about? Look at the way he models the face with contrasting blocks of white and grey, or the fiery red of her dress, offset by the cool blues of the background. The materiality of paint is so present, isn't it? The way the yellow of the hat is outlined in the blue, so that it almost vibrates. Malevich is often associated with the Russian avant-garde and movements like Suprematism, but here, I am reminded of some of the Fauvist painters, like Matisse. Even though he's working with a recognizable subject, he's pushing us towards something more abstract, more felt, more elusive. It's like he's saying, "Painting isn't just about what you see, but how you see.”