Young girl from Istria 1939

Hermann Lismann painted this young woman from Istria, who holds a kitten in her lap, with watercolors. Look at the way Lismann has allowed the colours to merge together; it makes me think that he might have built up the image gradually, adding layer upon layer of thin washes of colour, in order to find the right tone. When I look at this painting, I'm reminded of the work of Balthus, especially in the girl's pose, the way she is slightly withdrawn from us. I wonder if Lismann was interested in capturing a sense of stillness, or in exploring the complexities of human emotion. The texture is smooth, because the paint is quite thin, which gives the image a soft and dreamlike quality. The surface isn't overworked, and there is a sense of freedom in the way he has applied the paint. You can see this in the background, with the way he evokes a sense of atmosphere with just a few brushstrokes. Painting is like having a conversation with other painters across time, each one influencing and inspiring the other. It's a kind of embodied expression, and it always leaves room for multiple readings.