Alice Pike Barney, born Cincinnati, OH - The Sheik - n.d. - T-Shirt

A bust-length portrait of a bearded man in a striped turban and long white headcloth, drawn in soft pastel on warm grey paper by American painter Alice Pike Barney.

Visual Elements & Composition

The figure fills a vertical rectangle and looks straight out at the viewer with a calm, direct gaze. The turban is striped in red, ochre and yellow, while the white headcloth falls over the shoulders and frames the face. Below it, a loose garment in olive and brown tones fades into the paper. Warm flesh tones are modelled with touches of green and violet in the shadows, and the toned paper stays visible between the coloured strokes. The handling is loose and summary, so the costume reads as light and texture, and the eye settles on the eyes and the heavy shadow of the full, dark beard.

Meaning & Symbolism

The title names the sitter as a sheik, a leader or elder in Arab and Islamic contexts. Portraits like this belonged to a late nineteenth and early twentieth century fashion for costumed figures drawn from North Africa and the Near East, where dress, colour and drapery were valued as much as the individual face. Barney (1857 to 1931) was born in Cincinnati and became a prominent figure in Washington, D.C. cultural life, where she hosted a well-known salon. This pastel study shows her looser, more immediate side, working quickly from observation rather than building fixed detail.

Crafted for the Wearer

A portrait built on a calm face and a restrained palette suits a shirt worn close to the body. The turban and headcloth sit at the collar, so the drawn face is the first thing seen on the wearer, while the warm grey ground and olive garment carry the rest of the image down the chest. Wearing it puts this study of colour and drapery in everyday use.