I voted amusement, but I’ll admit I recognized which painting it came from, and knew the subject matter.
These two most closely match my reaction. I see him saying “oh, it is fucking ON!” He’s mad and is about to start some shit, but is enjoying the thought of it.
From those choices, I guess Anger?
but my first thought was “Excitement/Glee”
He looks like he’s scheming or lustful.
That’s about how I imagined it when I first saw the painting. It was like he had just heard a really great suggestion and the painting caught him in the middle of being like “oh, that’s a good one! I can just imagine the sultan reading that!” and was amused even though it doesn’t look like he is smiling per se.
I found it interesting to cover certain parts of his face and see what the individual parts reflected. His eyes alone to me suggest malice, and his cheeks show mirth. His mouth just looks indifferent, but I think that’s because the corners are hidden.
My thoughts exactly. The big mustache makes it harder to interpret his emotion.
What I see is slyness. That jibes with what a lot of other people are saying.
Interestingly, he looks less smiling in the full picture, even though I know the picture in this thread is identical to that part of the whole. Possibly because of the contrast with the other characters
“Greedy” is the closest to what I have always seen, and I’m familiar with the painting. I actually saw it in Leningrad (which it was called at the time) when I was 10, and mostly just thought “cool,” but since then, I’ve seen reproductions, mainly in an Art History class I had in college.
I don’t remember what the prof had to say about the painting, but ever since then, I’ve wondered, and unsuccessfully tried to figure out what exactly he’s looking at.
I can’t figure out if it’s a faraway expression, either contemplating the reception of the letter, or striving to come up with the next insult; or he’s looking at something on the guy across from him.
A faraway look makes more sense, so I’m thinking he’s working on coming up with the ultimate zinger. Everyone else has gotten a laugh, but he wants to have them rolling on the ground. So far, the great joke is just out of his reach, though.
I’m not sure if I can pin it down to the choices in the poll, but it looks to me like the fellow is enjoying something he’s seeing, but that he has such a strong RBF that his enjoyment could easily be mistaken for anger. I can’t pin down just how he’s enjoying it, though: It could be lust, or amusement, or pride, or whatever.
Now to read the rest of the responses.
I went with amusement and suspicion, but I should have added happiness. Whatever’s going on, he doesn’t look disappointed, but I’m not convinced it’s triumph either. I think he’s waiting to see what another person does, possibly to a third party.
ETA: I thought this was from a painting I’d seen before of some historical Ukrainian figures. Looking at the source, I’m not sure it’s the one I’d seen before or not. I didn’t remember a table and a letter.
I think another way to put it, and this more informed by context of the painting: it’s a game face. Concentrating (biting down on his pipe, others will often bite a lip) formulating exactly how he is going to slap the other side down … because the other side really deserves the beating he is giving.
My completion of the scene is that he is the sole person dictating the letter. Everyone else is laughing at his last line, and he is already formulating the next.
Yeah, anticipation of someone finding out there’s kind of a nasty surprise awaiting them.
Now, am I the only one who first looked at the OP’s avatar, and tried to ascribe emotions to the rather famous “face” on Mars? Looks like it’s blowing a raspberry.
I got lust, too.