"Girl from Eydtkuhnen II," Helene Schjerfbeck, 1927.
Finnish painter Schjerfbeck (1862-1946) has quite an artistic evolution. Early in her career, she worked mostly in Impressionist-style plein air styles or Naturalism, as well as a number of Realist historical paintings, many of which were not well-received because, of course, she was a woman and historic paintings were seen as male territory.
Later in her career she also violated norms by experimenting with modernism and Expressionism, as we see here. The model is unknown, but she is depicted with a certain panache. Her face is broken into component parts, but she's still recognizably human and I can't help but feel I'd recognize her if I saw her. She's elongated, with a pointed face and long neck, and the dress is a mere gridwork, but she's still warmly human. Her eager, interested expression draws me in.
Schjerfbeck continued to paint in her final years, including a series of Expressionistic self-portraits that are almost ghoulish.
Her birthday, July 10, is now Finland's national day for the painted arts.
From the Finnish National Gallery, Helsinki.
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