For the first time ever, I have become interested in painting people in a realistic manner. I decided to follow this fascination and make my concentration a series of portraits. I felt it was necessary to describe all the intricacies of the peoples’ personalities with an intricate style. My main goal was to create a likeness. There is also a focus on the face and a connective mood. The feeling is contemplative, engrossed and stilled. The environment is an important part of each of my pieces. As my concentration progressed, I incorporated more and more industrial elements into the backgrounds. Nature causes industrial equipment to decay, despite mankind’s attempt to create its own form of nature with industrial forms. I also tried to work with color movement since I find this to be one of the most striking aspects of art. When painting the pieces, I reflected colors around the page to create a sense of balance or emphasis. I am working using photographs for reference (which I almost always take myself) and painting in oils. Each of my pieces has a unique perspective and composition. When I took the reference photographs, I told the models about the mood I was going for and tried to capture them in that disposition. For several of the references, I compiled several photographs and manipulated the images to better suit the theme. With each piece I challenged myself to create more of a likeness, more depth, and more form.
Artist influences: Robert Lange, A Polite Winter, Angela Fraleigh, Winston Chmielinski, Heather Horton, Jennifer Poon, ~complejo (deviantART)
