Portraits

Some ramblings about portraits  and portrait painting... I'm lucky enough to appreciate most genres of art, but, apart from cartoons and caricature, it's portraits that most appeal to me.  To my mind, the most difficult subject, where the tiniest of errors can spoil the artwork.  In a way it's akin the cartooning, where it's people under the microscope albeit in an offbeat way.  I don't do many portraits, where a likeness is the main thing.  I do like drawing/painting 'types', often evolving into stereotype caricatures when that was not my intention.  (Just done a couple, but more about that later).  When I have the good fortune to be in an art gallery, it's portraits that grab my attention. In a way, 'LIKENESS' is not the main thing.  In many cases I've no idea who the people are, and therefore whether there was a good likeness achieved.  So I guess what's most important to me is...'is it a good painting'...is it a living, breathing representation of a person painted in an interesting way?   The experts tell uspaint from life.  But I'm looking for expression in the human face, you can't ask that of a model sat in a chair for an hour keeping still.  That lively, humorous expression will have slipped away to a wooden stare after the first two minutes. Here are two wooden stares, paradoxically in one of my  favorite paintings, Hans Holbein's 'The Ambassadors' in the National Gallery... ...look at those faces...all faces have an expression, even if it's blank (or wooden) as here.  This is what the 'paint from life' artist sees after a few minutes.  The blank face of a person wondering whether he's put the cat out, or if he should see his dentist.  But I like this painting, he's crammed it with interest,  including that strange elongated skull, and it's beautifully painted.  Many artists overcome the wooden stare of course, I wouldn't be able to manage it.  I'd paint from a photo, this allows you to capture the many fleeting, and interesting, expressions that flit across their face.  Several artists here on POL do just that...if I were a portrait painter I'd be one of them. As I've said some artists do the paint from life very well.  That bloke...Leonardo something, was one of them.  Apparently, he was tinkering with this for 15 years,  I'll bet it was the expression he wasn't happy with... ...and get it right he did.  It's a very subtle look.  If I got that look from a young lady, I'd reckon I was in with a chance. Then there was Rembrandt, he didn't have photos.  But he was a Genius.  If you need to  be a genius to be a portrait painter I've had it. Here's another genius, and a favorite painting.  Juan de Parega by Velazquez. Let's get away from these old master geniuses...they are shooting my argument in the foot.  Here's what I consider to be a modern genius who does use photos  as reference...Sebastien Kruger...who we've seen before on POL. The Laurel and Hardy portrait caricature is inspired...a perfect likeness, and you can't even see their faces...but who else could it be? I like this portrait by Degas...the central figure, a banker, commissioned the painting.  Degas has shown him at the stock market.  To me it has a  sense of immediacy, a snap-shot of real life.  A great way to paint a portrait.  And Degas used photos when it suited him. I may come back to this.  Had enough for now...I've had enough typing with my sausage fingers, continuously correcting things.

On reading back I’ve made this seem like a ‘paint from life v photos theme.  Not intended, it’s meant to be more a ramble about portraits in general, and how I’d approach it if I did more portraits.  I’ve tried both, but think I’d prefer to use photos.   So let’s agree there’s room for both methods.  My dinner’s about to burst into flames, so I’ll return to this later.

Heather, I hadn’t meant to go down the ‘from life OR from photo’ debate.  My opening remarks should have been more considered.  So let’s drop that debate.  I wanted to talk about portraiture in general.  It’s always inspired me.  The wonder of faces I guess.  All faces fit the accepted art ‘proportions ‘ guides, yet we all look different. I find many of the artist portraitists right here on POL inspiring, yourself included Heather.  My wall on this app has only work done by other POL artists.  I have several of your wonderful pieces on there.  (This might be a subject for Paul’s thread, provided he doesn’t want me to do it…I’m certain to miss somebody that I really admire.) I’m intending to show portraits I like, if you have any please say your piece.

I agree Denise, I'm glad you've found it better to paint from life.  Your portraits are getting better and better.  I'd prefer to use a photo reference, but we must each find the method best for us. When I think of portraits I tend to think of the standard head and shoulders job, but portraiture  can be presented in other ways.  The painting below is a favorite of mine.  Gainsborough's Mr and Mrs Andrews, painted in 1750. An interesting work, where the landscape plays an important part of the picture.  It's considered to be an early example of English landscape art, although it's primarily a portrait.  Gainsborough was a young up-and-coming artist when this was painted.  He achieved great success as a portrait painter, although he said in later life that landscape was his true love.  Back then it was considered an inferior art, and paid far less than portraiture.  This work also include a famous 'missing area'...the patch left unpainted in the woman's lap.  Several explanations  have been offered...it was to be a pheasant, or a pet, or even Mrs Andrew's unborn baby (she was pregnant).  Maybe we'll never know for sure why this small area was left unpainted.  It all adds to the work's mystique.  I think this painting is a gem.  It hangs in the National Gallery. I also admire this famous Hockney painting.  Mr and Mrs Clark...painted in 1971. Portraits don't have  to be of famous people, here's a truly sublime piece of work...Vermeer's 'The Milk Maid.' ...a wonderfully calm and atmospheric work, painted 400 years ago. One type of portraiture I have mixed feelings about are the Dutch group portraits, often skillfully painted, but boring and dry as dust.  Banquet of the civil guards by Frans Hals... He could certainly paint, but this does nothing for me. More later.