Portrait of Paul Alexandre c. 1909

Modigliani made this portrait of Paul Alexandre with pencil on paper, but when, we can’t be sure. It’s like he was feeling his way through the drawing, searching for a likeness with simple hatch marks. Look at the way he's built up the shadows on the sitter's jacket – so many little lines, so close together. There’s an incredible tenderness, a real intimacy, in that process of building up form. I get the sense Modigliani is really trying to see this person. And the face! Those almond-shaped eyes, the long nose, the delicate mouth. It all adds up to a really distinctive and memorable image. The slightly awkward angle of the head, the way the features are just a little bit off-kilter, it feels like something you might see in a Picasso of the same period. It’s this feeling of familiarity, of having seen something similar before, but with Modigliani’s own unique stamp on it. Art is a conversation, a back-and-forth between artists across time.