Oil on masonite

12" x 12"

2016

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This series was my final in Acrylic and Oil Painting in the fall of 2016. I wanted to explore, formally, intense unrealistic colors and, thematically, the idea of women existing outside of the pressure of an audience.

In response to critiques that my color schemes were too hard on the eyes and straight out of the tube, I darkened and abstracted the background to almost black. I picked increasingly odd colors for each detail - skin, shirt, hair - and picked a different color entirely for the shadows. Each portrait has a different color light source, and after adding highlights each plane of color is a more three-dimensional area than if I had used black and white.

My original theme idea was to portray women while not affected by societal pressures to appear perfect. However, when asking each model to pose, I instructed them to just relax in whichever way they normally would. All four decided to go on their electronics. In the end, the series reflects more how we act when we're alone - we reach out anyway to connect with other people in a different way.