Portrait of a Collective Farm Woman 1969

Vudon Baklytsky painted this portrait of a woman, maybe on canvas, maybe board—using little brushstrokes, or a palette knife, I can’t tell. She’s earthy, in browns and blues, framed by shards of light. I like to imagine him stepping back, squinting, adding another dab of color. You know how it is, trying to get it just right. What was he thinking about? Maybe her strength, her connection to the land. The face itself is like a landscape, right? Planes and angles, the nose a sturdy triangle. And those eyes, peering out at us, holding so much. I see echoes of folk art, of the Russian avant-garde, but Baklytsky’s got his own thing going on, for sure. It’s like he’s saying, "Here’s a person. Solid, real, but also a puzzle, a collection of impressions." That's what painting is all about, isn't it?