Portrait of a Woman - Théo van Rysselberghe

A 1918 portrait by Belgian Neo-Impressionist Théo van Rysselberghe, featuring a woman in a straw hat rendered with expressive, painterly brushwork.

This portrait, executed in June 1918, captures the characteristic style of Théo van Rysselberghe during his later period. While the artist is widely recognised for his early adoption of pointillism, his later work shifted towards a more fluid, painterly approach. This piece demonstrates his mastery of colour and light, with the subject depicted in a straw hat against a textured, dappled background.

The composition focuses on the sitter, whose features are rendered with soft, deliberate brushwork. Van Rysselberghe employs a palette that balances warm skin tones with cooler violet and blue shadows, a technique that creates a sense of atmosphere around the figure. The subject wears a white collar and a distinct orange necklace, which provides a sharp contrast to the muted tones of her patterned jacket. The background suggests an outdoor setting, likely a garden, where light filters through foliage to create shifting patterns of colour.

Van Rysselberghe was a central figure in the Belgian avant-garde and a founding member of Les XX. His transition from the strict application of dots to broader, more expressive strokes reflects the broader shift in European painting during the early twentieth century. This work is an example of his ability to capture a likeness while maintaining a focus on the decorative qualities of the paint surface itself. The signature and date in the upper right corner confirm the provenance of the work to the final years of the First World War, a period when the artist resided in the south of France. The print captures the texture of the original canvas, allowing for an appreciation of the artist's application of pigment and his sensitivity to the play of natural light on the human form.