Study of a head of an old Jew

Painted in 1855 and held in the Bavarian State Painting Collections, 'Study of a Head of an Old Jew' belongs to the group of character study heads that Menzel produced throughout his career, in which he directed his observational powers toward the physiognomy of individuals encountered in Berlin or on his travels. The identification of the sitter as Jewish reflects the social reality of mid-nineteenth-century Berlin, where a significant Jewish community was present, and Menzel's straightforward identification of this fact in the title suggests an unsentimental descriptive practice rather than caricature or idealization. These character heads are among the most direct expressions of his observational method, the face becoming the primary field for his tonal and physiognomic investigation. The Bavarian State Painting Collections hold a significant group of Menzel works that document both his public historical practice and his more private observational studies.

Menzel approaches the elderly face with the same tonal rigour he applied to all subjects from direct observation — the complex topography of an aged face described through careful light and shadow relationships. The handling is direct and unsentimental, neither beautifying nor caricaturing.