Flora

This portrait of a woman is typical of the art of Eugène Smits. The rendering of the features is realistic, with emphasis on the nose and chin, which are a little heavy, and the thick lips. The untied hair and the barely sketched mass of flowers crowning the hair lend a certain charm to this somewhat unattractive face. The composition…

This portrait of a woman is typical of the art of Eugène Smits. The rendering of the features is realistic, with emphasis on the nose and chin, which are a little heavy, and the thick lips. The untied hair and the barely sketched mass of flowers crowning the hair lend a certain charm to this somewhat unattractive face. The composition is reminiscent of the art of the 17th-century masters, who in Flanders as well as in the Northern Netherlands were fond of this type of allegorical portrait. Eugène Smits subtly uses pencil to sketch a modelled and shaded face, which contrasts with the more nervous and vigorous features that reflect the hairstyle. A few highlights of watercolour and white and blue gouache suggest the drapery covering the young woman's chest and the flower petals on her forehead.