Insecurities
Insecurities
Canvas 30.48 cm x 30.48 cm November 2020 - Insecurities is a self portrait that shows my very true self. When I paint myself I tend to cover all of the features that I do not like about myself and edit all of my imperfections. This painting is everything that scares me and was a huge challenge for myself to make. |
Inspiration and Background
- This project popped into my head one day when I was getting ready for work and noticed all of the little things of my face that I wasn't happy with. Most people have something, or many things about themselves that they would love to change and think they would be happier of they looked different. I have these feelings a lot, but I know I would never be happy with myself and I just need to embrace my flaws, which is something I really encourage everyone to do. On social media, body positivity is being pushed more and more and many companies and advertisements are trying to be more inclusive, which is amazing for the mental health of our generation and everyone. I wanted to add to this campaign by showing all of the things that bug me. I think the only way for our efforts to work is for hopefully everyone to begin to love themselves for who they are and not be ashamed of any uniqueness, cause that's what makes everyone interesting and what draws us together.
-Last year my art class took a trip to the Milwaukee Art Museum, which was my first time going. I really loved the experience, and remember when I saw Chuck Close's Nancy portrait. I truly loved how natural and real it was and was so inspired by his work. I wanted to show the true nature of us humans and how we really are, imperfections and all. I thought this portrait was so important for a lot of people since it shows everything, every detail. |
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Process and Sketches
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- I started this project by thinking about what I wanted to show. I knew I wanted a side profile but I wasn't sure how I wanted to frame it. I ended up taking a bunch of pictures and choosing one as my reference. I also decided to use one of my 1 foot by 1 foot canvases, or 30.48 cm by 30.48 cm.
- The next thing I did was sketch the image onto the canvas. Since I wanted it to be as accurate as possible I used the grid method to sketch it onto my canvas. I made 144 1 inch squares across the canvas and used an app that I have on my phone to put a matching grid onto my reference image. Then I just sketched the image onto the canvas. |
- Once I had the image on the canvas I started painting. The very first thing I did was mix the skin tones which were a lot of white, a little red, brown and a touch of yellow. I matched the color to my actual face by painting dots of color onto my cheek and matching it that way. The hair was a blonde color that was already in a tube that matched the front of my hair pretty well, and then for the back I mixed a bunch of orange with a little bit of red.
- With the colors mixed I started painting. First I painted a base layer of skin color over the whole face and then added reds and oranges to that base color to add the blush and my irritation spots on my face and neck. I darkened the initial skin tone to add some more shape to my face, then added blues and purples to paint the dark spots under my eyes. |
- The last things I did was paint my hair and the black of the background. For my hair I painted the blonde in the front with an almost perfectly matching paint color, all I had to do was add a slight touch of brown to it. And for the rest of my head I took a lot of orange and red, with a bit of brown and painted that base color. I then blended the blonde and the orange together where my hair starts to blend and mix. While that was still wet I went in with a smaller brush to add the darker and lighter hairs. I did this while they were wet so they would subtly be there. After I had the hair done I just took a black and painted it flat on the background. I also went over the shirt area with a white and then took a light grey to define some of the details.
Reflection
- This project was honestly a but hard for me to do. Like many people, I'm very insecure and I try and not point it out to myself as much as possible. This project made me look at what I didn't want to, and I think that's something we all have to do sometimes. We have too face the ugly truth to find the good. This project, like my self portrait, forced me to do something I necessarily didn't want to do. Im very happy I did this project and think it will add to my portfolio. Now, comparing it to Chuck Close, there are many, many differences. The only main similarity I'd say would be the idea, which is very important and influential to the painting obviously. I would have loved to do this project in a more similar style to Close's, but with what I was trying to show, I needed the color. Overall, I'm very happy with this piece and glad I chose to do this,
ACT Responses
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and its effect upon your artwork:
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What is the overall approach (pov) the author (from research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
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What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
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What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
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What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
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What is the overall approach (pov) the author (from research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
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What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
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What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
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What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
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