portrait of Hannah 2021

Aaron Nagel painted this portrait of Hannah using, it looks like, thin layers of oil paint to create a luminous effect. The color is so cohesive, almost monochromatic. The way he builds up the form with these delicate glazes gives the whole piece a soft, ethereal quality. The skin seems to glow from within. If you look closely at the background, you can see the brushstrokes, they are loose and gestural, creating a contrast with the smoothness of the face. Check out the light as it falls across Hannah's left cheek, the edge is soft, almost imperceptible. This reminds me of some of the old masters, like Leonardo da Vinci, who were masters of sfumato, that hazy, dreamlike effect. But Nagel brings a contemporary sensibility to it, a kind of quiet intensity that is all his own. It's a beautiful example of how artists are always in conversation with each other, across time and space.