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My comments on this portrait may have qualified as technical criticism, as some one noted, but my larger concern is more for the concept and effectiveness of the painting in total. The project would be overwhelming for any of us and we're short of knowing the original intent of the commission and the situation where it will hang.
If the intention was to incorporate the majesty of place as well as the personality and aura of the most recognized spiritual leader in the world, it faced a huge challenge. I have an ongoing project where the family wants to include their house interior (or exterior) that features two stories plus of windows with indications of fall foliage and the full family of six. In each case there is too much going on to do a fair job on a modest sized canvas. To give subject and locale good representation would call for a very large canvas and near life-sized subject to avoid having the subject appear dwarfed or the architecture diminished. Ironically the photos documenting the cathedral only serve to show how short the painting is in reflecting that extraordinary interior.
I have had people respond emotionally to some of my portraits and often wonder how much depended on my efforts versus the emotional attachment by the family to the subject. In some cases I think I could have painted "Baby Jane Doe" on the canvas and tears would have flowed. Is this painting a success aside from the personal and spiritual connections? I would have liked to see a portrait of the Pontiff that revealed something of the man behind the robes and symbolism. Instead the painting feels more like a photo op.
I think my comments are within the spirit of Cafe Guerbois and if the Pope is ever in need of an ex altar boy who still knows the Latin responses I would be more than happy to fill in. "Pater Noster qui es in caelis"......
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