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See Esther…

After making the ‘See Esther’ film with Neil, I thought more about the process of Epstein making a portrait bust.  The bust of Esther with a flower with her rather long neck is an open image of a young woman.  It sits in stark contrast to the first bust which is the subject of our film.  There is something unsettling in the image and I have begun to think it is the image of a young woman resisting being portrayed by her father.  Nowhere in any of the letters from Esther or Theodore am I aware of them referring to their father as anything other than ‘Epstein’.  Epstein’s Portrait busts were either of lovers, small children or the Famous.  The first Portrait bust of Esther is uncomfortable. Esther stares ahead. Her gaze looks to the middle distance to a space beyond the viewer, beyond the artist.

I am reminded of being a teenager and relatives asking ‘what are you thinking?’ and wanting to shout at them but not being able to. Epstein called the first bust of Esther one of his best.  He was right.

The default thing Art Historians say about Epstein’s busts is that he was a genius at being able to explore the psychology of his subjects.  I am not sure that this is anything more than myth making. What is great about the 1st bust of Esther in his in ability to capture Esther’s psychological state.

Like Leonardo’s Mona Lisa she remains her own person resisting easy interpretation. Unlike the Mona Lisa there is no enigmatic smile.