A Face Held in Colour (2024) Original Mixed-media Painting by Gela MIKAVA

In A Face Held in Colour, Gela Mikava constructs a frontal portrait from overlapping passages of muted blue, sage green, burgundy and pink. Two dark eyes establish a direct gaze, while an irregular pale band crosses the centre of the face, interrupting its continuity.

Rather than describing features through outlines, Mikava allows colour to carry the image. Broad, uneven shapes become forehead, cheeks and nose without losing their independence as painted marks. The small pink mouth provides a concentrated counterpoint to the subdued surrounding tones.

The visible canvas weave remains an active part of the surface, giving the face a tactile, fragile presence. At this intimate scale, the portrait asks for proximity: what initially resembles a simple mask becomes a shifting arrangement of colour, texture and expression.

Painted in acrylic on canvas and presented in a black frame with a cream mount. Overall framed dimensions: 14 × 14 cm.

Materials used:

acrylic on linen canvas

Details:

• Mixed-media painting on Fabric
• One of a kind artwork
• Size: 14 x 14 x 3cm (framed)
• Framed and ready to hang
• Signed on the front
• Style: Abstract
• Subject: People and portraits