Man with a Beard 1939

Editor: Sir William Coldstream's "Man with a Beard" has such a muted palette. I find the handling of paint quite fascinating; you can almost see the artist's hand in its making. What strikes you most about this piece? Curator: The visible labor is key. Consider Coldstream's process: the repetitive marks, the building up of layers. This isn't about illusionism, but about the act of painting itself, a physical, material process. Editor: So, it's less about the man and more about the making? Curator: Precisely. How the materials – the paint, the canvas – are manipulated to create form. It reflects a shift in focus, away from traditional representation toward an exploration of materiality. Editor: I never thought about portraiture that way before. It’s all about the materiality, very interesting!