Self-Portrait c. 1930

This is Alexander Zerdin Kruse’s self-portrait, made with graphite on paper. Look how the lines are hatched, like he’s building up the image slowly, bit by bit. I wonder what it felt like for him to look at himself so closely. Did he see a stranger, or did he recognize something deeper? Each line seems like a tiny decision, a moment of hesitation or certainty. The shadows around his face and hat are so carefully constructed, like he’s trying to capture not just his likeness, but also something about the mood of the room. There’s a history of artists looking at themselves - Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Bonnard, I think of them all as being in conversation with one another across time. Ultimately, it reminds me that every mark we make is a way of understanding ourselves and the world around us.