"Why bother with an artistic portrait?"
Good question. I'll try to make the case ...
There is no doubt that when a photograph is taken of a subject, the result is an absolute likeness.
All of us want to chronicle growth periods of our children, friends and other relatives.
We look through our family photos and remember Uncle Curtis asleep at the reunion,
mother's hair style from the anniversary party, cousin William's mismatched socks at his wedding.
Photographs do record moments in time. But ...
how do we remember and honor the
DESIRES ~ DREAMS ~ PASSIONS
of people we cherish
??
....
Who exactly are they? What inspires them?
Gardening? Reading? Listening to Music? Riding horses? Traveling?
When I sit down to create your portrait, I will examine your photos of the subject carefully, searching for expressions, postures, gestures which may be the visual "keys" to our subject's character. Early on in the process, I will ask you to describe the subject's nature which will, in turn, help me to discover the visual clues into their personality. Those elements, whether they be a broad smile, a tilt of the head, a gleam in the eye or the particular way the hands fold around their favorite book, will allow me to reveal their individuality on canvas by emphasizing (visually "selecting") those traits. This is the art of interpretation.
Art is interpretation. While photography can be an art form, traditional "studio" photographic portraiture is not. Many years of training and experience as a portrait painter and figurative fine artist (About the Artist ) enable me to use various techniques to achieve focus in a painting, revealing the subject's personality as well as a likeness. This process, for me, is an act of discovery.
....
Your portrait will reflect the essence of the subject in a natural setting ...whatever is natural for THEM.
Artistic Portraiture affirms the best part of a person,
providing a timeless glance into the entirety of the subject's life.
This distinctive painting can then be passed down through the generations.