Man in Blue (L'Homme en bleu)
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In the collection of Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia — check current display status with the museum.
Discussion
FROM THE BARNES FOUNDATION’S CATALOG
Though conventional in format, this portrait of an unidentified man is uniquely Soutine's in its gestural brushwork and fiery colors. As in Soutine's other portraits, hands are spectacularly expressive: positioned right up close to the viewer, they are a tangle of thick strokes, each a different color. The man's clenched body and grimacing face pulsate with an empathic energy that seems to wrinkle his suit; we can almost feel Soutine's presence as he tried to capture his sitter. One model described Soutine's working process: "He was turning red like a crayfish, his eyes widened and his beautiful fingers felt his throat and caressed his face. The emotion seemed to stimulate his sense of color, and he muttered incomprehensible words between clenched teeth. "
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More by Chaim Soutine
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Red Church (L'Église rouge)
Landscape with White Building (Paysage avec maison blanche)
Landscape with Houses (Paysage avec maisons)
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Landscape with Figure (Paysage avec figure)More like this
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Krona Bronstein — Seated Figure
Pablo Picasso — Standing Nude in Front of a Red Arch