The artwork, titled “Portrait of a Man,” was created by William Merritt Chase around the year 1879. This watercolor piece belongs to the Impressionism art movement and measures 27.31 by 22.23 centimeters. It is a portrait genre painting and is currently held in a private collection.
The artwork depicts a man in profile, capturing the subject’s head and upper shoulders. The man appears to have a bandage wrapped around his head and exhibits a contemplative, introspective demeanor, a notable characteristic of many Impressionist works. Chase’s use of watercolor gives the painting a delicate, fluid quality, emphasizing the subtle variations in color and light. The background is rendered in a loose, abstract manner, with swathes of blue and neutral tones that draw the observer’s focus to the man’s visage. This loose handling is indicative of Chase’s skill in capturing the essence of his subject with minimal yet effective brushwork.
