Wow, I did not know my post would elicit such controversy. My intention was only to help Jeanine with this wonderful piece. I do not think Mr. Sanden would take any offence to a slight reference to his painting; in fact his own work at times is influenced by Sargent's work and the artists that he admires. Jeanine has a difficult task ahead of her for this is a very ambitious composition as any full-length pose can be, as it is difficult to keep the head the focus when it is such a small part of the overall composition. The attire and environment can overpower the portrait if you let it. My reference to Mr. Sanden's work was only to show how another (and rather respected) artist handled a very similar painting and I certainly did not mean to imply that Jeanine was copying or stealing her composition. Many times we are inspired by a painting we have seen without even recognizing it, or fall on a similar pose or composition of another artist simply because our ideas on aesthetics are similar. I brought up a similarity I saw in one of W. Whitaker's paintings to one of my favorite paintings, Vermeer's Girl With a Pearl Earring circa 1665.
http://www.WilliamWhitaker.com/B_HTM...re/YngWomn.htm I most certainly did not mean any disrespect to Bill. As it turned out, although Bill did not intend originally to pay homage to Vermeer, he also saw the similarities and acknowledged them on his site. I think that Jeanine could do a lot worse then to be compared to Mr. Sanden, and should even be flattered that she is being compared to such an accomplished artist. But despite that I did not intend and I certainly hope that I did not take anything away from Jeanine's work with my reference.
Good luck, Jeanine, I am sure you have the skill to produce a fine painting and may it turn out to be your finest. In closing, I would like to add a few words of encouragement to all of us. If I may be bold enough to steal a quote from Mr. Sanden's book.
Quote:
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Over the years, I've noted certain patterns that govern the progress of art students. Those who approach their work with a total ambition, with no timidity, with confidence and with even a kind of arrogance seem to attain their goal with greater frequency. The three traits that seem to count most are a burning desire, perseverance and a healthy dissatisfaction with everything you've done before, coupled with a urge to do it better the next time.
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Now in closing I feel that no matter what stage we are as artists, we are lifetime students of our craft and we continue to grow so the words in this quote are good words by which to live our life as artists.