Untitled (Portrait of Henry Daniel, Art Master, Lawrence School, Lovedale)

A perceptive observer of people, Anjolie Ela Menon would paint portraits of people who had influenced her—as she does of this early mentor who guided her practice. The lean, Modiglianiesque figure in a turtleneck gazes off into the distance, the eyes hollow pools, able, almost, to look all the way into one’s soul. While the long hair, sideburns and walrus moustache are indicators of men’s grooming style of the Seventies, the austere demeanour and haunted look point towards an elegant, intelligent personality with an introverted mien.