Bidspirit auction | Daniel Levi (20th–21st century)

Daniel Levi (20th–21st century) - Portrait in the moonlight, 1964. 97.8×63.5 cm Oil on canvas, framed and signed. The work comes from the USA. The work before us, ”Portrait by Moonlight”, is an impressive expressive work from 1964, which illustrates the power of figurative painting to express not only a figure but also a mood, feeling and inner world. The female figure, with long black hair and a pensive presence, stands at the center of the composition, with a symbolic and richly colored space built around her. The artist uses free brushstrokes and a dramatic color palette of oranges, reds, grays and deep blues. The shining moon in the background and the flames or bright lights in the foreground of the picture create a visual tension between light and darkness, between the external world and the inner world of the figure. Her emphasized face, looking directly at the viewer, gives the work emotional power and an unforgettable presence. The work bears expressionist characteristics Distinct, in which color and painterly gesture are no less important than realistic description. The figure, landscape, and atmosphere merge into a poetic vision that combines portrait and landscape, reality and memory.