Portrait Of a Lady (plastic drawing) 1915

Lyubov Popova made this portrait, likely with oil on canvas. It's not a portrait in the conventional sense, is it? More like a construction, an assembly of shapes that suggest a figure. Look at the way Popova layers these forms, the brushstrokes thick and visible, building up a surface that's almost sculptural. The colors are bold and contrasting, reds and blues, yellows and greens, each plane distinct yet interconnected. It's like she's taken apart the idea of a portrait and rebuilt it from scratch. See that curving blue form at the bottom? It reminds me of a draped cloth, or maybe a twisted ribbon. It's a small detail, but it anchors the whole composition, giving it a sense of depth and movement. It is like she is in conversation with Picasso and Braque but wants to have a conversation about materials and processes.