I had started to write this sitter’s biography in my mind before realising that I didn’t know anything about him, although I’ve always been a bit judgemental like that. He has a beard, cap and serious expression, which seemed sufficient to assign to him decades of hard work and a rather practical attitude towards life. This is Fisherman, painted by Stojan Aralica (1883-1980) in 1936 and displayed at the National Museum of Serbia in Belgrade. The title at least supported the fishing element of my assessment. My own experience in the whole fishing arena is largely confined to ordering fish with chips.
It’s perhaps tempting to describe the fisherman as weather-beaten or weary, perhaps a man taking a little rest after a demanding morning. Having noted that, I can produce a similarly grave expression when trying to establish whether a railway ticket is valid on a particular service. It would be unfortunate if someone subsequently interpreted that as evidence of a lifetime of suffering.
As an aside, during the late 1930s, Aralica was quite a risqué painter and I suspect that some of his artwork might have been classed by the Nazis as degenerate art, although I haven’t found evidence that they specifically condemned his work.
The title identifies him through his occupation, but it doesn’t give us his name or explain his relationship with the artist. That leaves a considerable amount of room for the imagination, which is perhaps why I was so ready to fill it. Had the title been Retired Accountant, I might have put a little less thought into the arrangement. Anyway, that uncertainty is what I rather like about this portrait. Aralica has preserved the man’s appearance, while much of what I might want to know about him remains beyond my reach and I rather like that.