The Nubian Guard 1902

Ludwig Deutsch made The Nubian Guard with oil paints, creating tight detail in the rendering. It’s a very different approach to artmaking than I take. The artist has applied thin, transparent layers to build up the scene. The paint is so finely applied that the surface almost disappears. It’s less about touch and more about creating a window onto this other world. Look at the way Deutsch renders the light as it catches on the marble columns. He creates these tiny, precise strokes of pure white. That little bit of light makes the marble look smooth and round. I’m thinking about Ingres, especially in the artist’s emphasis on detail and creating an exotic setting. It’s interesting to consider the different ways artists can evoke places and people that are unfamiliar to them. There are as many ways of interpreting the world as there are artists to make art!