From the Artist: This project is great! I've never done anything like it, never ever finished any piece of work in an hour, and never worked so carefree! I'm not sure I'll be doing anything like it soon again, but it must have opened some windows in my head and shook some cobwebs. The portrait is inspired by another painting in the monthly project gallery of this month (I'll leave you all to guess!).
I worked as free and instinctively as possible and tried not to think. Deep in my heart I didn't believe any good could come of it, but looking at it now, I'm particularly happy with the eyes. I'm a bit disappointed in the nose, which is not at the right angle, but I didn't wanna correct that, because I think it would ruin the clearness and strength of the picture!
From the Painting Guide: While this isn't a portrait of someone I'd want to meet on a gloomy city street, I think it's a fabulously expressive portrait, with a strong sense of character and emotion radiating from it. I certainly wouldn't 'correct' the nose; I think the facial features being sightly off-kilter adds to the overall effect.
I'm delighted to hear you enjoyed the project, that you gave it a go despite your reservations, because as the result shows, unexpected things can happen! You may find that the next time you try to do something similar, the result will be dissatisfying because you're trying to hard and are inhibited by the success of this painting. The solution is to do several, acknowledging to yourself before you start that some to be less successful than others, but that if you've done it once, it will happen again.
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Eyes: What's that saying about the eyes being the window to our soul? Certainly we judge a person's mood by their eyes, which is why these wide eyes with their intense blue and staring are so effective. The purples and reds could be interpreted as the result of crying or a hangover, which means viewers can give quite different interpretations (or background stories) to the portrait.
Less is More: Look at how red is used on the lips, with the top lip described in detail, and the bottom more suggested. Your eye fills in the "missing" details. It's often more effective to paint less detail than more for a painterly feeling (rather than a photorealistic feeling).
I worked as free and instinctively as possible and tried not to think. Deep in my heart I didn't believe any good could come of it, but looking at it now, I'm particularly happy with the eyes. I'm a bit disappointed in the nose, which is not at the right angle, but I didn't wanna correct that, because I think it would ruin the clearness and strength of the picture!
From the Painting Guide: While this isn't a portrait of someone I'd want to meet on a gloomy city street, I think it's a fabulously expressive portrait, with a strong sense of character and emotion radiating from it. I certainly wouldn't 'correct' the nose; I think the facial features being sightly off-kilter adds to the overall effect.
I'm delighted to hear you enjoyed the project, that you gave it a go despite your reservations, because as the result shows, unexpected things can happen! You may find that the next time you try to do something similar, the result will be dissatisfying because you're trying to hard and are inhibited by the success of this painting. The solution is to do several, acknowledging to yourself before you start that some to be less successful than others, but that if you've done it once, it will happen again.
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Eyes: What's that saying about the eyes being the window to our soul? Certainly we judge a person's mood by their eyes, which is why these wide eyes with their intense blue and staring are so effective. The purples and reds could be interpreted as the result of crying or a hangover, which means viewers can give quite different interpretations (or background stories) to the portrait.
Less is More: Look at how red is used on the lips, with the top lip described in detail, and the bottom more suggested. Your eye fills in the "missing" details. It's often more effective to paint less detail than more for a painterly feeling (rather than a photorealistic feeling).