The Portrait
The portrait is one of the most striking forms of art. The ability to successfully represent such a complex subject has always astounded me. The portrait predominantly emphasizes a subject’s face and their expressions but is not limited to simply that. The portrait allows the artist to depict visually, what a person is experiencing in any given situation or moment in time.
Image: Tina
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Similarly in literature, the term includes not only the physical representation, but also provides insight into a person’s emotional state; including hopes, fears, dreams, etc. The Irish author James Joyce uses this technique excellently and most noticeably in his novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, which seeks to delve into the main characters psyche revealing those hidden emotions the outside world cannot see.
Image: Ivyelm - A Dryad
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However, saying this is in no way meant to discount the power that can be displayed visually. Though I don’t necessarily agree that a picture is truly worth a thousand words, I certainly can’t argue with how an artist is able to represent a person’s emotional state so successfully.
Image: The Street as Graphic Novel 43
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If the eyes are the window into a soul, what then is the face? In an effort to bypass sappy wittiness, I will dismiss answering that one. However, it seems that the face provides a much better depiction of one’s emotional state, than eyes alone can provide.
Image: The Show Stopper
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Though the face often provides the most striking representation, one must not bypass appreciating the surroundings the subject is in. Not only is it the face, body and expression alone that must be contemplated, but also the surroundings. It is often the peripherals (clothes, background, lighting, style, color, etc.) that enhance the appreciation of an excellently composed portrait.
Image: Clown
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Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is unarguably one of the most famous portraits in all of Western artistry. Another one of the most well known portraits is Vincent Van Gogh’s Self-Portrait. Contrasting those with the iconic depictions of such pop stars as Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe provides a much fuller idea of the variances in portraiture. The portrait spans hundreds of years and though technique and style vary throughout time, the basic tenants of the portrait remain.
Image: F80 - 76, 2008
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Whether the effort is subconscious or not, the portrait depicts a person visually in such a way as to express the emotional, cultural, societal essence of the subject. It is the artists that can capture these best that provide some of the most brilliant artistic portraits.
Image: … Melihah…
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Though there are obvious similarities in portraitures, there can also be differences. For example, what is the difference between a portrait, and a candid photograph? Are there similarities? This makes me wonder what other types of portrait styles there are.
Have other inspiring or striking portraits? Share them.
Nate
Tags: Art Prints, Member Art, Portrait