70. Portrait study [around 1910]
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70. Portrait study [around 1910]
1856, Vidim, Austrian Empire - 1938, Prague
Estimate:
EUR 5.000 - 8.000
Sold
EUR 14.000
oil on canvas, 23.5 x 29.5 cm, 23,5 × 29,5 cm, signed bottom right, in pencil, "И.В.М."
This small-sized canvas is a good example of Ivan Mrkvichka's great talent in building a complex psychological state in the portrait and accurately conveying the type with all the ethnographic, historical and socio-cultural features.
The complex multi-figure compositions that the author creates, such as "Market in Plovdiv", 1888, "All Souls' Day", 1890, "Shopsko horo", 1892, "Rachenitsa", 1894, and many others, include dozens of characters, each of whom has an individual physiognomic characteristic, emotional state, characteristic costume and role in the overall composition. To build these impressive works, the artist drew dozens of sketches.
This sketch is an example of such a type of preparatory portrait, in which the author set himself the task of conveying a specific state, face, movement and type. Two portraits of young people are located in the small-sized canvas. On the right is a young man with dark hair, swarthy skin, wearing a brown cap and a white shirt. The boy has a serious expression, his gaze fixed forward and his left eyebrow raised.
On the left side of the canvas is a portrait of a young girl in profile to the left with long hair braided and her head slightly bowed. The girl is wearing a white shirt and a brown vest.
The emotion and expression of the faces, the gaze and the movement of the heads capture the viewer's attention. The sketch has that spontaneity and energy that is sometimes lost in the process of completing the work.
The canvas is extremely valuable for any collection because it shows a stage in the work process. These images are probably present in other paintings by Ivan Mrkvichka, which is proof that even such a researched artist again poses challenges to the audience. (S.N.)
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