Part 5 is my opportunity to consolidate and build on what I have learned so far.
After re self-assessing all of my previous work and after responding to my tutors assessments of my work so far I was asked to select one of the previous four assignments as the starting point for my personal project.
This was an easy decision for me and I straight away choose ‘The figure and face’. This was the project I enjoyed the most during the course. I find the human form fascinating and I thoroughly enjoyed focussing on the face.
Before starting my work I thought it would be useful to brainstorm my initial ideas. I had lots of ideas and questions in my head and I felt like I needed to get it all down on paper so I could organise my thoughts.
Even though my brainstorm may not make sense to other people it definitely helped me to start to organise my thoughts. This brainstorm was a way for me to put down ideas about a subject or theme but equally it allowed me to ask myself technical questions about style and form and materials, media and lighting as well as thinking about how I might like to work.
When thinking about ideas for a subject or theme, based around the figure and the face, I realised I was again quite restricted as to where I could take this project due to the pandemic and not being able to see anyone outside of my home. I was quite interested in documenting the ageing process but decided this would not work without having access to anyone else. The other idea I was interested in was experimenting with foreshortening and how foreshortening can distort the figure.
I decided to complete another brainstorm this time focussing on foreshortening as my starting point.
Very quickly my starting point of foreshortening moved on to looking more at distortion and various ways in which the figure or the face can be distorted.
My next natural step was to research artists who distorted the figure or face in different ways. I decided to create an image board of work to help further inspire me.
I found some really exciting artists that inspired me and I found putting images together and physically in front of me really gave me a sense of where I could go with this project.
From my image board I decided to explore how portraits have been distorted in art and the reasons behind this? I decided to investigate artists who distort the portrait by physically altering their sitter before creating the art and artists who distort the portrait whilst creating their art. I wanted to ask the question how this effects the sitters identity and whether distortion allows us to see more of the sitter or less of the sitter?
I decided to start with my initial idea of looking at foreshortening. I wanted to explore how distorting the figure by making body parts larger or smaller depending on distance from the viewer can effect the overall impact of the portrait.
I started by looking at the work of Jenny Saville. This was an artist I had researched and explored in part four. I loved her large expressive oil paintings of fleshy female nudes who challenge society’s stereotype of beauty by using the technique of foreshortening to emphasise scale and mass of particular body parts in a sexualised way.
Below is an example on one of savilles works, ‘Studied for branded 1992’.
Accessed 15th February 2021
https://www.nationalgalleries.org/search/artist/jenny-saville
I then came across some of Savilles drawings, even though I love Saville’s expressive brushstrokes and fleshy colours, I was excited to discover her drawings.
Below are two examples, ‘Muse on Stool.’ and ‘Reflective Flesh Study.’
Accessed 17th February 2021
https://gagosian.com/quarterly/2016/05/05/jenny-saville-erota/
These beautiful drawings have been completed in charcoal and oil pastels. Like Saville’s paintings they use foreshortening to explore notions of identity, beauty and sexuality. To me they are even more exciting than her paintings. I love her use of expressive individual lines and marks in both drawings. Neither drawing shows the face, which forces the viewer to really focus on the importance of the body. This also takes away the sitters identities, and presents the sitters more as objects rather than people. These missing faces emphasise Saville’s unfinished look to her work, which just adds to the intensity of the drawings.
‘Reflective flesh study’ appears to have lots of layers, almost like lots of different poses have been drawn on top of each other. This in turn gives the drawing form and makes me feel like I am viewing the whole person. I love how when you look at a small section of this drawing the marks don’t make sense, they just look like smudges and lines, however observing the drawing as a whole, the lines, marks and smudges come together to form an exciting and dynamic portrait.
‘Muse on a stool’ looks more at tone than line. However there is still a strong sense of expressive line in this drawing that really gives the drawing energy. This drawing looks like it is made up of a mixture of
pastel and charcoal. Her skin tones are made up of soft realistic pastel tones that show both light and form, whereas her edges are made up of lots of expressive thin lines that don’t appear to be going anywhere. I love how these lines make exciting shapes that in turn show light. And how they contrast against the softness of the tones of the skin.
I then looked at the work of Duarte Vitoria who I also explored in part four. I was attracted to Duarte’s use of large brush strokes, bright colours and extreme contrast in exaggerated sizes of body parts due to foreshortening.
Below are some examples of Vitorias paintings that show foreshortening,
Accessed 15th February 2021
I also came across some examples of Vitorias drawings. The drawing below appears to have been created from charcoal. This drawing shows high contrast between the dark tones of charcoal and the white of the page. I love how the white of the page has been used as the lightest tone to show light.
Unlike the drawings by Saville that I looked at, where her sitters faces have not been included, this piece by Vitoria, through the use of foreshortening really focusses on the sitters face.
The large face, particularly the eyes facing upwards towards the viewer compared with the comparably much smaller legs shows vulnerability. The sitter appears to be covering herself and her facial expression appears to be pleading with the viewer.
Accessed 17th February 2021
The extreme use of foreshortening in both Vitorias and Savilles portraits look at identity in different ways. In the two drawings I looked at of Saville’s, the faces of her sitters were not included thus stripping these women of their identities and forcing the viewer to really question what identity is? Vitoria however really explores her facial expressions and in the three images I looked at and her faces play an important role in each of them.
Both artists through their use of foreshortening to question society’s perception of identity, beauty and sexuality.
I decided to look further at how extreme foreshortening has been used in portraiture and to further explore the impact this use of foreshortening can have on identity.
I came across Salvador Dali’s
‘The Ascension of Christ.’ This too was a painting that used dramatically exaggerated foreshortening within his figure of Christ.
Accessed 3rd February 2021
https://www.dalipaintings.com/the-ascension-of-christ.jsp
This surrealist works painted in 1958, depicts the body of Christ rising up to heaven. His hands are risen on either side of his body creating an almost triangle shape with his body.
His face and his facial features are not visible. (This I discovered, was a common feature when looking at more of Dali’s works on Christ.)
Dalí has managed to manipulate the space, depth and distance in his portrayal of this appearingly three dimensional figure of Christ by using foreshortening. His use of the technique of foreshortening is so dramatic it makes me feel as if I am looking at an optical illusion.
His feet, legs and torso are central to the piece, however due to foreshortening, his feet are double the size of his receding legs, body and head put together. As well as using foreshortening to show distance Dalí also uses Aerial perspective. Christ’s feet have been painted darker and as the body gradually recedes outwards the tones get lighter & lighter. This adds even more depth and impact to Christ’s body.
Even though Dali’s subject matter is surreal in this painting the way he has approached his painting style for his figure of Christ, is realistic. He has used realistic skin tones for Christ’s body and small realistic brushstrokes. Even though Dalí appears to have exaggerated his technique of foreshortening his painting of Christ appears to have been painted in a realistic format.
This painting style is in quite dramatic contrast to that of both Saville and Vitorias bold expressive and colourful portraits that also explore the technique of foreshortening.
As a historical contrast but keeping within the theme of Christianity I looked at Andrea Mantegna’s 1480s ‘Dead Christ.’
Accessed 5th February nq2021
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamentation_of_Christ_(Mantegna)
This is a realistic painting of Christ lying on a marble slab, presumably having been removed from the cross. Next to Christ are two figures who appear to be mourning him. Enhancing the effect of the realism is the paintings use of perspective, due to the effect of foreshortening Christ’s head and chest appear large and his legs very short and his feet very small.
The viewer is observing from slightly above Christ at the foot of his bed. This makes the painting feel very intimate and personal and makes me feel like I am also in the room mourning him.
The use of foreshortening in both of these paintings not only creates dramatic effect but allows the viewer to feel part of the scene. The positioning of both of these portrayals of Christ along with the artists technique of foreshortening allows the viewer to see Christ from a more intimate angle thus creating a stronger connection between painting and viewer and thus strengthening the identity of the sitter who happens to be Christ.
After researching Saville, Vitoria, Dalí and Mantegna’s differing approaches to using foreshortening and the effects it has on perspective and dramatic impact I decided to experiment with doing my own drawings. I wanted my drawings to explore identity and I wanted my drawings to allow the viewer to see my sitter in a more intimate way than a portrait that doesn’t use foreshortening would.
I started by taking some quick photographs on my phone of my seven year old son Leo. I tried to set up some exciting poses that use the technique of foreshortening but also express my sons personality.
Below are my results.
I then completed some very quick drawings of my son posing in these positions. I used a black pen and only spent a couple of minutes on each of these drawings. My son is unable to pose for too long so I had to be quick.
My next step was to complete some slightly longer drawings and to experiment with more materials. My next drawing probably only took about 5 minutes but it meant I was able to experiment with more materials, I used a mixture of pen, pencil and pastel in this drawing. I really focussed on making the feet the main focus of the drawing and really enlarging them. I positioned Leo on a table and I looked up at him from the floor. I was pleased with the expressive quick nature of this drawing. I think through my marks I also managed to show Leos sense of movement and how a split second later he was waving his legs around. I feel like this drawing shows Leos fun carefree personality, even when seated he is still moving and kicking his legs happily. I think my use of foreshortening with focus on his feet really expressed this.
For my next drawing I wanted to experiment with media again. This time I lay a background down of scrap paper from a magazine and I worked with a selection of crayons and some coloured ink. This was again a fairly quick drawing. In order to exaggerate the technique of foreshortening I put Leo in my very large dr Martin boot. I am pleased with this drawing however there are some areas where the ink has spread out and distorted some small details in my drawing.
For my next drawing, I drew on cardboard and I used a mixture of charcoal and chalk pastels. I positioned Leo with his fist pointing forwards and I exaggerated the size of his hand. Working on the cardboard I think was effective, the colour alone seemed to add depth to the drawing. Again this was a quick drawing so maybe a longer study using the same materials could be more impressive?
For my next drawing I asked Leo to put his hands together, I bent down slightly lower than he was sitting and looked up at him slightly. This gave the foreshortening effect of very large hands in comparison to his face and arms.
I used pen and ink for this drawing and I tried to use just short sharp lines. I wanted to be expressive and I wanted to be experimental and try something new. Ultimately I found this difficult and I am not especially happy with my results. I feel as though I have achieved my main aim which was to create a drawing showing an exaggerated sense of foreshortening, however I am not happy with how I executed my idea of only using straight line. I feel like by focussing on trying to be expressive or experimental I lost my focus on trying to be accurate. I think Leos shoulders are too narrow and his eyes are too big. I also think my drawing ended up looking a bit flat? Next time I think I should vary the thickness of the lines in order to add more depth? Or spend more time trying to build the lines up in order to create tone so I can show form?
As I was unhappy with my drawing I experimented with adding more ink, however this didn’t improve the drawing it just made it look a mess.
I decided to move on from foreshortening and decided to look at other ways the figure or the face could be distorted. I came across Leonardo Da Vinci’s ‘Studies of the heads of two warriors’ 1505.
Accessed 7th February 2021
I was initially attracted to this drawing as I loved the extreme expressions on the warriors faces. Being the mother of three little boys, ‘pulling faces’ is a common occurrence in our household. Sometimes these distorted faces show anguish or heightened emotions, sometimes they are pulled to annoy each other and sometimes they are pulled in moments of fun or silliness.
After some more research I found out that this particular drawing is one of very few remaining preparatory studies left from a missing Da Vinci painting called ‘The Battle of Anghiari.’ The title of the drawing and the missing painting tell me that Da Vinci probably wasn’t experimenting with expression or pulling silly faces but was instead showing anguish over war and battle.
I love the unfinished nature of these drawings, the quick marks that show a hint of the outline of the head and the shoulders and the much more detailed tonal qualities around the features. It feels like these warriors are coming alive as they are being drawn.
I later came across some other drawings of Da Vinci’s that do appear to be pulling silly faces.
Below are some examples of his works that I found,
Accessed 11th February 2021
These drawings show Da Vinci’s exploration of the mechanics of the face. All of these drawings appear to show unusual features and exaggerated facial expressions.
In part four I studied Da Vinci and I noted his idealism’s of beauty including his 1490 Vitruvian Man. The Vitruvian Man shows ideal and perfect sizes and proportions of the male body.
This drawing appears to be in direct contrast with the exaggerated features and expressions on the faces above.
I found out that Da Vinci was actually fascinated with strange and unusual features. So much so that he was known for following unusual looking people and then drawing them later.
Perhaps he did this to explore the mechanics of expression or of different faces or facial features? Or maybe he just created them to make people laugh?
I decided to experiment with distortion of facial features by asking my children to pull funny faces and try to distort their own faces. Below are some photographs of my results.
I then experimented with some drawings. For my first drawing I drew Leo distorting his mouth by using his fingers to pull his mouth apart. I worked with pencil and I used a selection of different softnesses within my pencils in order to try to emphasise tone and form. Overall I am pleased with my drawing. I am pleased with my accuracy and detail in this drawing and I feel like I have used my pencils effectively. I do feel however that areas of Leos eyes look a little over worked and also I could do with developing and building up some more tonal work and detail in his hands.
For my next drawing I drew Leo with his tongue out. I worked with crayon and ink and I drew quickly. Whilst I enjoyed being expressive with this drawing, using big strokes and working in a carefree manner, I am not overly pleased with my results. I think my use of colour is probably too obvious which makes my drawing look flat and like a cartoon character. However I did manage to capture Leos silly face and an essence of his energy and his silliness in my drawing.
I wanted to continue to be experimental for my next drawing. I laid down some scrap book paper as a background and I worked with charcoal and watercolour paint. I was pleased with the effects of my drawing, in particular the very watery watercolours. Even though my drawing doesn’t show much detail or tone I still feel as though I have managed to capture Leos fun personality effectively.
I found that my drawings of my children’s faces being distorted by them pulling silly expressions add a layer of intimacy to the portraits. The viewer gets to see a side (a silly side, a fun side, an important side) they wouldn’t normally see in a non distorted portrait.
I decided to look at contemporary artist Rut Mackel next. Rut Mackel is a photographer who has created works that show people’s distorted faces squashed against glass. Below are some examples of his photographic project ‘The ugly Truth’
Accessed on 8th February 2021
These photographs of artificially flattened and disfigured faces explore and raise questions about identity and visual perception.
People tend to draw their identity from their faces. I myself identify myself and my loved ones firstly by our faces.
Knowing that these distortions are temporary I see them as nothing more than a temporary distortion, however I wonder if I would feel differently if these distortions were permanent? Would I feel distressed? Would I not be able to identify with these faces? On a second look at these images, I am faced with questions about identity and beauty and visual perception?
I decided to create some of my own work in response to Rut Mackel.
I found a beautiful face (my five year old son Teddy) and I distorted it by squashing it up against a window, I then photographed him in this position and then drew from my photographs. (He would not be able to stay still long enough for me to draw him from life.)
Below are my photographs:
I firstly worked with charcoal. I am pleased with my proportions in this drawing and I certainly feel as though I’ve transformed my beautiful five year old into something ugly. This drawing was fairly quick so in retrospect I could have spent more time building up tones and perhaps adding a hint to colour to try to show depth.
For my next drawing I used charcoal again only this time I added in some colour with chalk pastels. I feel in this drawing that some of my proportions are out slightly, notably Teddy’s nose, and in some areas my tonal work looks a bit flat. I am also not sure if it is immediately obvious that his face has been flattened with glass?
For my next drawing I used a palette knife and oil paint. I wanted to be more experimental with colour in this drawing and play around a little with texture. Whilst I am really pleased with my texture, my mark making and my expressive use of colour I again think that I have failed to show that Teddys features have been flattened and distorted by glass effectively. I also think my work is lacking in some smaller fine detail.
I then came across Wes Namens photographic work called ‘Invisible tape series’ these works show his subjects faces wrapped in tape.
Below are some examples,
Accessed 10th February 2021
https://www.google.com/amp/s/contrastly.com/wes-naman-interview/amp/
These Photographs show a mixture of men and women within a similar age bracket (30s-40s). Their heads shoulders and upper torsos are shown and they all seem to be dressed up in unique and exciting ways involving bright colours or fabrics that contrast with each other.
Like Rut Mackel, Wes Naman appears to be exploring the temporary distortion of the human face, only Naman uses tape tightly wrapped around his subjects faces rather than panes of glass squashed against their faces.
I find it interesting that Wes Namen clearly dressed his subjects up in extravagant clothing making the effort to make all of his subjects look different to each other, to only go and then take away their identity’s by covering their faces in tape and distorting their features.
To me this just reinforces how valuable the face is in self identity.
To me these portraits, just like Rut Mackel’s works, really investigate how alterations to the face can change and challenge perceptions of identity.
These portraits really do make me question how I feel about the importance of the face. I don’t consider myself to be shallow or judgemental however these portraits definitely evoke feelings of discomfort in me. Even though I know these distortions are temporary I am forced to consider how my reactions might be if these were permanent distortions.
I am surprised how little it takes to distort a persons face so drastically that their identity is challenged. For feelings of discomfort to be evoked by the use of a small amount of tape really makes me question the fine line between what we as a society consider beautiful and what we as a society consider abnormal? And more importantly why we as a society put so much importance on outward appearances?
In response to these works I photographed my husband Robs face wrapped in tape. My intention was to draw from these images but on reflection I should have put more effort into the quality of my photographs. I should have considered both lighting composition and angle, even if I was just using them as a reference to draw from rather than a piece of art in itself.
Below are my photographs,
For my first drawing I used pencil and I worked on a3 paper.
I was pleased with my use of shape on this drawing and my proportions were accurate in as much as my drawing looked like rob with tape on his face. However I feel my drawing doesn’t have much depth? It seems quite cartoony. This could be improved with further build up of tone. Not drawing robs neck didn’t help my drawing as it looked like a floating head! I also wonder if my photographs were of a better quality could this have helped my drawing too?
I then experimented with drawing rob on some scrunched up brown paper. I used charcoal and coloured chalks and worked fairly quickly. I wasn’t especially pleased with this drawing. The scrunched up paper was difficult to draw on. I found capturing any sort of tone or detail difficult on such a bumpy surface and ultimately I don’t think it added anything to my drawing.
I then experimented with tape on my seven year old son Leo. I firstly tried his face but I was very aware of not wanting to hurt him when peeling it off. So these photographs didn’t work at all. I then experimented with tape on other areas of his body including his stomach and his hands. I wasn’t especially pleased with any of these images.
I decided to draw Leos hand. Below is my drawing.
For this drawing I worked with pencil. I tried to depict the tape by leaving white areas on my page, I feel this worked well. I also tried to experiment with different pencil grades in order to show different variants of tone. I did try to show shadow however I didn’t do this very effectively. The shadow of my hand on the table looks wrong. Maybe I should have shown the texture of the wooden work surface under my shadow? Or maybe toned down the darkness and heavy outline? Shadow is definitely something I need to work on in the future.
I then experimented with an elastic band around Leos hand. I liked the way it pulled in the skin and altered the appearance of his hand. Below are my photographs.
My drawing in response to these photographs is made up charcoal, white chalk and brown chalk on top of a piece of brown paper. I am really pleased with this drawing. Often when I lay down coloured paper as a background it doesn’t work. However I feel like in this drawing it does work! It adds a new tone and colour to my tonal work which in turn adds more depth. I am pleased with my proportions and use of shape and my use of tone does start to show the form of the hand. On reflection I do need to continue with the wrist as this looks incomplete or unfinished.
Ultimately I feel like I did manage to distort both Robs face and Leos hand in my drawings. Both Wes Namen and Rut Mackel have opened my eyes to how easy it can be or what little needs be done to distort a face in order to provoke feelings of discomfort and to raise the question of why we as a society put so much value upon outward appearances?
I then discovered the work of contemporary Spanish artist Eloy Morales, a photorealistic and hyperrealistic painter who paints very realist portraits and self- portraits. Below are some examples of his work from his series ‘Paint in my Head.’ Painted between 2009- 2013 these paintings are self portraits of his own face smeared in thick paint.
Accessed 13th feb 2021
When I first came across these images I naturally assumed they were a photography project exploring self identity and distortion much like Rut Mackels photography work with glass and Wes Namens photography work with tape. However when I researched a little further I discovered these amazing images were actually large scale oil paintings.
I find these paintings awe inspiring. The use of detail and tone is just incredible. These paintings are so detailed and so thorough the only way I know they are not photographs is because I have been told they are paintings. When this pandemic is over I would love to see these works exhibited, I would love to see the texture of the paint in real life so I can see for myself that they are indeed paintings.
Morales tonal work is exquisite, I can only imagine each tiny section of the face must be studied intently and each tiny section of the face must take hours upon hours to complete. Every facial pore and hair is captured and every speck of light is shown. The smeared wet paint on the faces capture even more light than dry skin would which in turn adds to the realism of these pieces.
I find the eyes in these portraits fascinating and I am immediately drawn to them. They are incredibly intense. The eyes alone appear to be made up of hundreds of different tones of colour. Zooming in on my screen I am able to see these pigments so I can only imagine how incredible these look in real life.
I wonder if the paint smeared all over the faces adds to this intensity of the eyes as they are the only part of the faces that have been left without paint? Maybe by distorting the rest of the features by covering them with paint, the feature that has not been distorted appears more dominant or intense?
In response to these incredible paintings I smeared my husband Robs face in acrylic paint, below are my photographs.
I then drew from my photographs, for my first drawing I used pencil.
My main focus was making sure I drew the features and shape of his face accurately with correct proportions so it actually looked like him. On reflection I am pleased that my drawing does actually look like Rob, however I do think I could work on the tone further in order to create more form and depth to his face as I feel this drawing looks a bit sketchy.
Below I experimented with different media’s on a section of Robs painted face.
I used a mixture of pencil, charcoal, biro, oil pastels, chalk pastels and acrylic paint. I am not especially pleased with these experiments, they all seem a bit flat and could do with being worked into further. I do however always find experimentation very beneficial even if it’s to just tell me how not to do something.
For my next drawing I used charcoal and I worked quickly, this time I focussed on the mouth area.
I then decided to do a painting of the entire face. I used acrylic paint and I worked into this using a fine liner to show detail.
Whilst I do quite like my drawing/painting. This is not quite what I was aiming for. The fineliner pen makes my painting look like a cartoon which is not the style I was aiming for. Also my application of paint does not show enough variations of tone or light which makes it appear quite flat. The paint on the face I think especially looks flat. When comparing the paint on Robs face in my drawing to the paint on Eloy Morales faces, the main thing I notice is Morales use of light whereas on my drawing I have not showed light at all. Also Morales has clearly spent time building up tonal areas on the paint that emphasises how thick it is whereas my painted areas show little to no tone at all.
I decided to try to paint Rob again. This time I tried to show more variants of tone. Below is my painting.
Overall I am pleased with areas of this painting, by using more tone and variants of colour I have managed to show shape and form quite effectively. However there are certainly areas for improvement, including the eyes that look unrealistic and flat. This is because there is no variant of tone or light in the eyes. Maybe because the rest of the face has been distorted by paint this intensifies the importance of the eyes, and as I have not done a very good job with the eyes then this is even more obvious?
Looking at the work of Eloy Morales has certainly inspired me. I love the way he distorts his features with thick wet paint and I am completely amazed that he is able to make his paintings look so much like photographs.
I then came across the work of Mathieu Laca. A portrait artist who distorts his portraits faces on the canvas using the paint he is painting with.
Below are two examples of Lacas works, Ernest Hemmingway & Franz Kafka
Accessed 14th February 2021
https://www.saatchiart.com/laca
Laca is a contemporary Canadian artist who is known for painting historical figures and artists. He applies thick textured oil paint with an impasto technique and distorts or blurs part of his faces with the paint. To me this distortion of the face makes me think of more than just a portrait of the external person it makes me think about what may be going on in the subjects mind. To me Lacas’ portraits show personality and flair and appear to delve into what’s on the inside of the sitter. The smeared paint distorting the features of his portraits allows the viewer to delve inside the sitters mind. I love Lacas use of colour. The backgrounds and clothing of his sitters are often dark and dull tones, then from his sitters head and faces come these great swathes of colour like an explosion of personality coming to life.
Unlike Eloy Morales who paints photo realistic paintings that depict the models exact external faces, Lacas’ work is more expressive in that he tries to show more than just the outer layer of his sitters.
Perhaps because Laca studies historical figures whom he probably never had the opportunity to meet but probably did have the opportunity to know their works or thoughts or beliefs. Perhaps this is why his portraits express more than just their external shells?
In response to Lacas works, I painted a section of a face. I tried to capture Lacas impasto style by using thick oil paint and a palette knife. I thoroughly enjoyed experimenting with this style and a wide variety of colours.
I then came across Adam Caldwell who, like Mathieu Laca distorts sections of his portraits faces with paint.
Adam Caldwell is a contemporary American artist whose works combine realist portraits with elements of distortion and abstraction.
Below are some examples of his portraits,
Accessed on 15th February 2021
http://www.adamhuntercaldwell.com/#/maritime/
Caldwell’s portraits like Lacas appear to question identity and blur the lines between the mind and the body. They evoke feelings of conflict in me. I seen anguish and tension when I look at these portraits and I find myself questioning these subjects identity. Who are they? What are they feeling? I am forced to look beyond their external selves and I find myself wondering about their minds.
Both Laca & Caldwell’s portraits inspire me to think more about who I am trying to represent and why rather than just being concerned with the physical attributes of a persons external appearance.
In response to both Mathieu Lacas works and the works of Adam Caldwell I drew my parents, unlike Lacas works they are not historical figures however I do identify my parents with what’s on their insides rather than their external appearances so I thought drawing them would make a nice change to drawing my sons and husband. I obviously had to work from photographs as I am not allowed to physically see anyone outside of my household, however Laca too must have worked from photographs as many of the historical figures he painted were dead by the time he painted them.
I decided for these pieces of work I would experiment with Caldwell’s realistic painting style and try to distort my faces in a similar fashion to Lacas style.
Below are my paintings of my Mum and Dad.
I experimented with colour on both of these paintings. I tried to be expressive and use colours I wouldn’t usually use on a portrait. I also tried to focus on shape and form so my work actually looked like my parents. But mostly I wanted to blur the lines between the mind and the body. I wanted my work to question identity and to look beyond my parents physical selves.
On reflection I am pleased with my paintings. I feel like I painted my parents accurately yet distorted both of my parents faces just enough to question the importance of their physical appearances. However if I was to create these paintings again I feel like they would be more exciting and more dynamic if I experimented with Lacas impasto painting style.
So far I have explored different ways in which artists have distorted portraits. I have explored reasons for this distortion and I have looked at how this distortion has effected identity. I have also looked at whether this distortion has enabled the viewer to actually see more of the sitter by distorting certain features or body parts?
One of the areas of distortion that I haven’t yet explored but I did include in my original image board and brainstorm is reflection. I have therefore decided for the next part of my project I will look at reflection.
I will start by looking at how reflection can distort a portrait but I will move on to explore how reflection is used in portraiture, the reasons why reflection is used in portraiture and the effect reflection can have on a portrait. I would also like to question if like distortion, reflection can allow the viewer to see more.
Caitriona 