From the Artist: Portrait of Daisy was painted on the occasion of her 'coming out' in
April 2008. Daisy Gerbera was a big hit with all in attendance for her red outfit. Known as a nature lover, she is particularly fond of bees, birds and butterflies. Daisy Gerbera's official name is Gerbera jamesonii.
From the Painting Guide: Every gal ought to have her portrait painted to celebrate her 'coming out'! There are some lovely things happening here, starting with the stem with which has a strong sense of being three dimensional, of texture and variation in color, and of the shadow on the edge as it turns away from you. The sense of the individual petals, the color and the shadows. The sense of the flower head being attached to the stem, of it creating shadow on it (that tiny touch of shadow across the top of the stem really makes it!).
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Positioning of Subject: I like that the stem is at a slight angle rather than at parallel to the edge of the canvas. It makes the composition more dynamic. As does the fact that the line in the blue background is at an angle.
I also like the positioning of the flower away to the left rather than dead center, with it leaning into the space. If it had been central, the circular shape of the flower head would easily make for an uninteresting ("fried-egg") composition.
Background: Having read your statement, I find myself "reading" the background as a curtain (the top half with its vertical brushmarks) and spotlight (the lighter section in the bottom half) on Daisy, and it makes me smile. I do, however, wonder about the position of the bottom of the dark blue, whether it wanted to be a little higher up. Where it is at the moment it creates some distracting shapes of darker blue around the bottom of the petals.
From the Painting Guide: Every gal ought to have her portrait painted to celebrate her 'coming out'! There are some lovely things happening here, starting with the stem with which has a strong sense of being three dimensional, of texture and variation in color, and of the shadow on the edge as it turns away from you. The sense of the individual petals, the color and the shadows. The sense of the flower head being attached to the stem, of it creating shadow on it (that tiny touch of shadow across the top of the stem really makes it!).
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Positioning of Subject: I like that the stem is at a slight angle rather than at parallel to the edge of the canvas. It makes the composition more dynamic. As does the fact that the line in the blue background is at an angle.
I also like the positioning of the flower away to the left rather than dead center, with it leaning into the space. If it had been central, the circular shape of the flower head would easily make for an uninteresting ("fried-egg") composition.
Background: Having read your statement, I find myself "reading" the background as a curtain (the top half with its vertical brushmarks) and spotlight (the lighter section in the bottom half) on Daisy, and it makes me smile. I do, however, wonder about the position of the bottom of the dark blue, whether it wanted to be a little higher up. Where it is at the moment it creates some distracting shapes of darker blue around the bottom of the petals.