Anders Olsson 2020

This is a portrait of Anders Olsson, painted in oils by Nick Alm. What strikes me most is the stillness; the muted tones, the soft focus, it all contributes to a kind of quietness that really draws you in. The handling of the paint has a lot to do with this. It's so smooth, almost like velvet. You can hardly see any brushstrokes, but in the areas where light hits the hardest, like on the bridge of his nose and the edges of his glasses, there's a subtle build-up of paint that creates a gentle glow. I'm reminded of Lucian Freud, particularly in the way the paint seems to describe the delicate structure of the face, but with a lighter, more ethereal touch. It’s this tension between solidity and ethereality which really makes it sing. Ultimately, it's a painting that invites contemplation, a reminder that art is not just about what we see, but how we see.