Portrait Of Sarah Bernhardt 

Giovanni Boldini captured this ‘Portrait of Sarah Bernhardt’ in a delicate drawing. The composition is dominated by the sitter’s head and shoulders, rendered with soft, tentative lines that give the portrait an ethereal quality. Bernhardt’s features are softly modeled with subtle shading, conveying a sense of her introspective mood. Boldini’s choice of medium and technique is crucial here. The pencil lines, varying in pressure and direction, create a network of marks that define form and volume. The materiality of the paper is evident, with its warm tone contrasting with the cool grays of the pencil. This interplay of line and tone, combined with the economy of detail, reflects a certain modern sensibility. Boldini avoids traditional notions of portraiture, focusing instead on capturing a fleeting impression of his sitter. The open, unfinished quality of the drawing invites the viewer to engage with the artwork actively. The very structure of the drawing becomes a means of questioning representation itself.