A Jew of Tangier 1909

Bror Julius Olsson Nordfeldt made this etching, A Jew of Tangier, at some point in his life. It’s currently hanging out at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Look at the way Nordfeldt's lines build this man's face and beard. It's all done with tiny hatches and cross-hatches, like he's mapping the terrain of a lived life. You can almost feel the scratch of the etching needle on the plate, a direct translation of his hand and eye. I love how the light catches on the paper, giving it a kind of glow, especially around the face. It’s like the man himself is radiating some inner light. There’s something here that reminds me of Rembrandt’s portraits, that same interest in capturing the weight and texture of human experience. Art’s not just about what we see, but about how we see, and maybe even more, about how we feel our way through the world.