Saviour’s face,Martyr 1919

Alexej von Jawlensky made this painting, "Saviour's Face, Martyr," with oil paint, and you can really see the artist’s hand. It’s so process-oriented. The way he's built up the layers of color, it’s like he's searching for something. There’s this dreamy quality to the face, rendered in strokes of pale blue and white. The paint isn’t overworked; it's laid down with a kind of directness. Take the vertical line of dark red paint running down the face, suggesting the nose. It’s not about realism, it’s about feeling, about capturing something more profound. The eyes, just slivers of grey, hint at an inner world, a sense of melancholy perhaps. It puts me in mind of Emil Nolde, another artist who wasn’t afraid to use color to express raw emotion. Jawlensky’s work reminds us that art isn’t about answers, it's about asking questions.