Head of a Woman

Mediums: limestone.
Location: the National Gallery of Art, Washington (the USA).

The sculpture reflects Modigliani’s characteristic stylization of a face with elongated features and almond-shaped eyes. The work combines references to the Cycladic and Romanesque cultures. Seven sculptures made in this style were shown in 1912 as a “decorative ensemble”. Later, according to the memoirs of contemporaries, the author placed candles near his figures to achieve the effect of being present in the “primitive temple”. Art historians believe that the sculptor reflected the features of Anna Akhmatova in this and several other works (for example, her hairstyle with bangs and her strict profile) – in those two years he drew her many times and wrote letters to her in Russia.