Head in Black and Green 1913

Alexej von Jawlensky has painted a face in black and green. The artist seems to have had a plan, but also, maybe, no plan! I imagine he has shifted the paint around, maybe wiping it off at times, until, intuitively, a face appears. I like the color choices: who says a face has to be pink? Here it is green, blue, a spot of red on the forehead, and some heavy black outlines. There’s this great dialogue between the sharp graphic lines and the more blurred planes of color. What’s so cool is how these bold strokes communicate an entire feeling, a whole person. And you know, all painters look at other painters. Jawlensky’s simplified form and flattened space reminds me of Gauguin, but with a completely different mood. It makes me wonder, how does seeing this painting influence what I do in my own studio? I like that artists keep each other company this way, across time. There isn't one way to see it, and paintings change depending on who is looking.