From the Artist: I'm not entirely comfortable with the painting, but I've now worked through this three times and I'm frustrated. Maybe it's the vulnerability involved in putting yourself on canvas. As hard as I've tried to mask that, I think you can still see it. At any rate, I think this represents me better than some other self-portraits I've done.
From the Painting Guide: I think you do make yourself vulnerable when you paint a self-portrait as you're showing other people how you see yourself, especially if you're painting in an expressionist style where realism isn't the primary concern. Many people expect a self-portrait to be photorealistic and can respond negatively to one that isn't, or simply don't know what to say. It's important not to take such comments to heart, but to either walk away from them or try to explain what your intentions were to expand the viewer's expectations of art.
I think this is a portrait that conveys a sense of character -- the strong eyes, the strong line of the mouth. I find myself wondering about the red on the cheek and if that's stitches on the other cheek... so it's a portrait that pulls me in and keeps my looking.
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Composition: What do you think about the bottom third of the painting? Do you feel it's too empty by comparison to the rest of the composition, or do you feel it creates a balance (given how much is in the rest)? I'm undecided myself, but leaning towards thinking it does work well, that it pushes the viewer's eye up into the face itself.
From the Painting Guide: I think you do make yourself vulnerable when you paint a self-portrait as you're showing other people how you see yourself, especially if you're painting in an expressionist style where realism isn't the primary concern. Many people expect a self-portrait to be photorealistic and can respond negatively to one that isn't, or simply don't know what to say. It's important not to take such comments to heart, but to either walk away from them or try to explain what your intentions were to expand the viewer's expectations of art.
I think this is a portrait that conveys a sense of character -- the strong eyes, the strong line of the mouth. I find myself wondering about the red on the cheek and if that's stitches on the other cheek... so it's a portrait that pulls me in and keeps my looking.
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Composition: What do you think about the bottom third of the painting? Do you feel it's too empty by comparison to the rest of the composition, or do you feel it creates a balance (given how much is in the rest)? I'm undecided myself, but leaning towards thinking it does work well, that it pushes the viewer's eye up into the face itself.