Il professore cavalieri di Luca 1905

Peter Hansen painted this watercolor portrait of Il professore cavalieri di Luca, its brown palette forming a tonal harmony with the man’s dark suit. Hansen is economical with his brushstrokes, allowing the figure to emerge from the paper, the wetness of the paint bleeding into the ground. You can see how the artist has pulled the brush down the page, and in turn, gravity has taken hold. I imagine Hansen in his studio, brush in hand, making small adjustments, pushing and pulling the image into being. The marks are light, but so evocative. I wonder what it felt like to paint this picture? Did Hansen know this man? What kind of music did he play? Perhaps Hansen was interested in the relationship between the visual and the aural, the way that the professor’s music might fill a room like the watercolor seeps across the page. I find myself thinking about other artists who were interested in music, like Kandinsky, and the conversations between artists, across time, continues to inspire.