Portrait Georg Plach 

Franz von Lenbach rendered this portrait of Georg Plach with oil on canvas. What I see first is the penetrating gaze, a staple of portraiture aiming to capture not just likeness, but the very soul. Throughout art history, the eyes, or their depiction, hold profound significance. Think of ancient Roman portrait busts, their eyes suggesting a capacity for stern judgment and authority. Or consider the Christian tradition, where the all-seeing eye of God symbolizes divine omniscience, an attribute often assigned to leaders. Here, the eyes possess a similar intensity, a gaze that seems to pierce through the canvas and into the viewer's own subconscious. This unflinching gaze can be traced through various epochs. It reappears in the Renaissance portraits of powerful rulers and merchants, each using the intensity of the eyes to project an image of unyielding authority. Even now, this visual language persists. It is a relic, surfacing in modern political imagery, constantly evolving, and finding new life.