The Honorable Jonathan Lippman, Chief Justice, New York Court of Appeals, Albany, New York 2017

This is Daniel Greene’s portrait of The Honorable Jonathan Lippman, Chief Justice, New York Court of Appeals, Albany, New York, and it's painted with incredible attention to detail. I think about the choices Greene made, how he built up the painting layer by layer. The weight of the robe, the textures of the chair, and the soft light on Lippman’s face—it’s all so carefully observed. I wonder if Greene thought about legal proceedings while painting this piece. Like, how each brushstroke is like presenting a case, building up evidence to create a convincing whole? There’s a stillness in Lippman's expression, a sense of composure and authority that Greene has managed to capture. Think about how much painting comes down to close looking and an understanding of how light and shadow define form. Maybe Greene was inspired by the work of other portrait painters like Sargent or Rembrandt. It’s funny how artists are always in conversation with each other, each one riffing off the work of those who came before.