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The Anonymous Portrait Gallery - 5
More human drama, probably painted from a photo. The off-centeredness and uncertain expressions are especially charming. (Interesting side note: The great self-taught painter John Kane was blasted by the Pittsburgh press in the early 1930s when reporters "proved" that he produced some of his pictures by painting over photographs. By Kane's account, this issue of authenticity came as a surprise, since he did not believe his use of the technique was a secret. In hindsight, of course, the controversy seems absurd.) The next two pictures are both Maxwell Street specials. I'm not in love in with the mother and child, but the saturated colors and weird proportions redeem it. The faces on the family portrait are another thing -- almost classical in their wide-eyed, painterly naivete.
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