Study of a Female Figure c. 1930

Olga Boznanska made this gorgeous painting of a woman in what looks like oil paint. The paint handling is so loose that everything flickers, a bit like a memory fading at the edges. I see lots of browns, creams, and greys, making it feel like a sepia photograph. But it's a painting, so it has the added dimension of touch, of Boznanska really working the surface. You can imagine her standing there, brush in hand, squinting, trying to capture the essence of the sitter. Look at the way she’s rendered the face. It’s almost blank, just a few strokes suggesting features. Was she more interested in the overall impression, the mood of the scene, rather than a precise likeness? It reminds me of Whistler or even Manet. They were all part of a generation grappling with similar questions about representation. There's a connection between artists, like a visual game of telephone, each one building on what came before. We are all in this together, trying to figure it out!