Portrait of V. Zamirailo 1919

Boris Kustodiev created this portrait of V. Zamirailo on paper with a pencil, in 1919. Looking at this drawing, I imagine Kustodiev making the marks, and the graphite almost dissolving into the grain of the paper. It makes me think about what Kustodiev was chasing after, you know? He's building up tone and volume with repeated marks and cross-hatching. I love that the image appears from the accumulation of these marks and the subject begins to emerge. Zamirailo is portrayed with his eyes closed. Maybe he was in repose, reflecting, maybe even a little bit melancholy. We don't know what he's thinking. It's really up to us to fill in the gaps. It reminds me that artists are always talking to one another through their work and across time. Each gesture carries a conversation, a question, a provocation. It's pretty cool when you think about it that way.