Head in a napoleonic hat 1915

Josef Capek painted this around 1915; it's an oil on canvas, a head wearing a napoleonic hat. The painting is full of geometric forms rendered with small brushstrokes. Capek lays down thin washes of color; the orange of the face seems to glow from within. He doesn't hide his process. The surface is built from a series of overlaid marks that define the face and hat. It’s like Capek is trying to capture not just the look but the very idea of a Napoleonic head. The zigzag of the jacket at the bottom feels like it could be the bars of a cage. What does it mean for the artist to trap this image of power? Capek was interested in folk art, and you can see some of that rawness here. I'm reminded of Picasso's cubist portraits from around the same time, but Capek's feels more playful and less concerned with fracturing the image. In the end, it is less about deconstruction, more about construction and creation.