How are you?
Modigliani Institute Korea (MIK) is
currently introducing artworks of Amedeo Modigliani one by one every week.
The 70th work to introduce for this
week is “Chakoska (Portrait of Lunia Czechowska)” in 1917.
This work is an expressionist style
portrait and an oil painting on a canvas with the size of 81 x 45 cm, and currently
held in MASP (Museu de Arte de São Paulo) in São Paulo, Brazil.
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| São Paulo Museum of Art |
This painting is a portrait of Lunia Czechowska from Poland, a friend of Léopold Zborowski, who was Modigliani's art dealer, patron and friend. Modigliani painted many portraits of her, and this is one of a series showing Lunia wearing a cameo.
The period that Modigliani met
Lunia almost coincides with the time when he met Jeanne Hébuterne, between late
1916 and early 1917. Modigliani was strongly attracted to Lunia, the model for
this painting, that he painted her many times and formed a strong emotional
bond with her. However, she recalled that Modigliani's such feelings appeared
to her like an obsessive way when drawing her, which sometimes made her feel
even fearful. On the other hand, she also said that she was always amazed at
Modigliani's ability to completely reveal her soul by completely transforming her
image into something completely new in the painting.
In the fall of 1919, when
Modigliani found that he had severe tuberculosis and Hébuterne fell into a
depression, it was Lunia who helped the two.
The background of this painting is
painted thick like other portraits of her. The dull-looking dark gray
background harmonizes with Lunia's sad-looking gaze, the color of her hair and
a dark gray skirt. The pure white, collarless blouse is decorated with a cameo
that can be also seen in her other portraits, and the point on her neck is
balanced with the cameo.
In this painting, the eyes are
painted black instead of the eyes without pupils, which is one of his unique
painting styles. Modigliani often drew eyes without pupils when it was
difficult to understand the model's mind. However, Lunia's eyes painted black
seems to feel as if she is looking at Modigliani with compassion. Her
sad-looking gaze, who supported Modigliani, seems to reflect the feeling of
Modigliani that she seems to be looking at him that way.
She said “I immediately felt such a
strong feeling that he wanted me to give up everything to follow him.”
However, in this painting, since
Lunia is depicted as a dull face, Modigliani's intense passion towards her is
not felt at all.
This painting was one of the
earliest portraits of Lunia, and Modigliani wrote her name phonetically,
“Chakoska.”
Thank you.
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