The Figurative Art of Painting the Face



A work in progress

Firstly, it is the face that attracts anybody. As an artist, the thing I love to paint foremost is the face. It would be very easy so find the reason if one analyses it. But I would just like to say that emotions affect me. And the face is the part of the body where emotions show most easily. In that case, I would be an adherent of the Expressionist school of art, I understand.

Slowly I am getting to know my art. Why do many kinds of things? Why experiment with so many colors? Isn't it the right time to choose, to focus on some, and block out the rest. For a signature style, isn't it necessary to choose?

And layering - of colors - so that it shows in depth, is essential. For some time now, I had been concentrating on small size paintings. I had moved away from my size, which is large. In India, when I started off, I started with the large size. Due to the economy, I have forced myself to do the small sizes. But that has not been very satisfying. That should not be the case, but that's how I am feeling. My personality likes big paintings, and I should not confine myself to the small ones.

With this thought process, I am preparing the ground to restart work on the large ones. Hope this is the right path. What do you say?

Framing of Paintings

Below are samples of different kinds of traditional ornate frames for painting:

Before the advent of modern art, before art installations assumed the centerstage in the avant garde art market, there was something that was the most popular way of bringing beauty into a house or a building. The two-dimensional painting. Artists painted scenes from everyday life like reading, kitchen, gardening, etc. Flowers were a popular theme. It gave both color, and simple beauty. And to capture everything in a painting, was the frame. The quality of the frame, how ornate or imposing in size it was, showed the status of the owner, as they came in high prices only. Frames were hand carved by master craftsmen, finished and polished. The gilt frames were most valued.

Even nowadays, in art galleries where old masters are exhibited, these kinds of frames are the only ones used with their work. They show off the effects, colors and brush strokes most effectively and to the best advantage.

With the minimilastic present day form of art, frames have become less or not ornate at all. Simple flat straight edged frames are used for water color and pastel artists. And many oil artists have done away with frames at all.