A Close Portrait 2021

Milt Kobayashi made this close portrait with paint, though I couldn’t tell you exactly when. The marks here are bold, the paint is applied with confidence. There’s a square block of red hovering above the figure’s head, like a thought bubble, or maybe a halo, that’s been smeared and scraped back to reveal layers underneath. It’s like the artist is showing us the painting’s history, the decisions that were made and then unmade. Look at the woman's gaze, her eyes are intense and knowing. Kobayashi captures her expression with just a few strokes of paint, and it's incredible to see how much emotion can be conveyed with so little. The surface of the canvas is built up with layers of color, a symphony of pinks, blues, and grays that create a sense of depth and atmosphere. All the while the ghost of previous marks remain. The way he builds up the image is reminiscent of Francis Bacon’s portraits, with their raw, visceral energy. It’s like a conversation across time. The ambiguity and the process is the point.