Miguel de Cervantes 1900

Paula Modersohn-Becker's 1900 oil painting, "Miguel de Cervantes," depicts a lone figure on horseback, silhouetted against a muted landscape. The rider, likely the famed Spanish author, is clad in dark clothing, while his mount is rendered in muted white, and the landscape is dominated by muted greens and browns. The distant windmill adds a symbolic element to the composition, perhaps referencing the windmills from Cervantes's novel Don Quixote. The artist's use of bold brushstrokes and simplified forms, characteristic of early Expressionism, imbues the work with a sense of emotional depth and a timeless quality.