Miss Close 1939

Wyndham Lewis made this portrait, Miss Close, with oil on canvas. You know, I can really feel his process here; it's like he’s trying to capture not just a likeness, but the essence of this woman, Miss Close. The painting feels very grounded in a specific time and place. The muted palette, the subdued lighting... I imagine Lewis really thinking about how the light falls on her face, how the textures of her clothes catch the light. Look at her hands, how they’re clasped so formally. The way he’s rendered the fur collar and the sheer veil is fantastic. It's almost like he's trying to trap a certain kind of atmosphere and time. Lewis has a knack for structure; there's a solidity to the composition, yet it feels so intimate, like a conversation between the artist and the sitter. It reminds me of Holbein, in a funny way. All painters are constantly looking back while trying to do their own thing. It makes me think that painting is like a long conversation!