Alizarin Kurt - Elizabeth Peyton
I love the dark aesthetic here. I feel like I can get lost in the deep and brighter reds on the left that make the hoodie’s bled purples and whites almost feel safe by contrast.
The head and neck are tilted forward, the left arm pulled behind him—you can imagine the shoulder up—and the right arm down and front, relaxed, but in a bony, hurt, I-can-show-you-hell sort of way.
Shoulders are really expressive. Hunching the shoulders and lowering the head protects the neck when a person fears an attack, real or virtual. His hair covers his eyes and ears. Kurt is vulnerable in Peyton’s portrait, and what Kurt’s showing us is a cool acceptance of insecurity and guardedness.