A large ink portrait of considerable psychological intensity — a young woman in three-quarter view, the face tilted slightly forward, the expression one of contained displeasure or wariness. Of all the ink portraits, this one carries the most emotional charge after the Stern Face (635) — the eyes beneath heavy brows have a quality of guardedness, the lips set, the overall posture suggesting someone who is not entirely at ease.
The hair is drawn in the most physically substantial ink treatment in the portrait series: long, straight, falling on both sides of the face and well below the shoulders, described in multiple overlapping strokes of varying weight. The ink mass of the hair — dark on the left side, lighter on the right — creates a frame that gives the face its visual containment.
Below the face, a buttoned garment — possibly a jacket or blouse — is described with unusual clothing specificity: the button line down the center, the collar lapels, the shoulder's mass. This clothing anchors the figure in a social context — this is a specific garment worn on a specific day.
At the left, an arm emerges in the lower composition — the beginning of a gesture or posture that extends the figure downward. The overall composition is one of the most complete in the ink series, engaging head, clothing, and the beginning of a body below.