(Portrait of an old woman) by Felix Alarcon
(Portrait of an old woman)
Felix Alarcon
Title
(Portrait of an old woman)
Artist
Year
c. 1880
Technique
oil on board
Image Size
10 1/2 x 8 11/16" board
Signature
pigment signed in lower right
Edition Size
Annotations
Reference
Paper
State
Publisher
Inventory ID
CHRO112
Price
$2,000.00
Description
An extraordinary painting of an old woman looking at the viewer, her hands resting on the curved top of her wooden cane, the glint of a plain gold ring on her right hand. Alcaron's work usually fell into the commercial arena with decorative genre scenes and portraits of young, high society ladies in their finery. This portrait stands apart from his usual output, having chosen an unusual subject whose expression and hands tell a story of a person who has seen and experienced much; Alarcon's brushstrokes are delicate but intentional, creating a sense of movement that follows from the halo of silver hair on the woman's head, illuminated by the light coming through a window, to the tip of her nose and down along the knuckles of her hands. A small but remarkable piece.