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Lovely work, Alex. The clarity and the quality of the light is wonderful. The double portrait of a single person in an allegory works very well indeed. There is no doubt about it not being a straightforward portrait of two different people. There is a definite feeling of the artist setting memories in physical paint, as well a organising ideas and responses to those memories in a deliberated on composition. The younger version of your brother feels like the past with the present layered on top without it obstructing the past. The relationship of the compositional elements as well as the younger and older versions of your brother are very thoughtfully worked out so that both the ideas and the painting's objects, colours and shapes work very harmoniously.
A wonderful painting.
(I think that you could push these allegorical works even further by focusing on the actual paint itself and the beauty and meaning in the abstract qualities of oil paint i.e the unexpected and undefined feelings of longing or glory or sadness etc. that come across in the paint marks as you are working out the drawing or composition. In other words allow more of the paint marks you respond to excitedly to remain (even though you might not think other people would like them as well as you) and perhaps allow more variety in the paint marks. In other words, it is a bit like riding a horse without a bit. It feels completely wrong and out of control if you have been riding with a bit for ages, but it is so rewarding to trust the horse and allow for its personality and movement and wildness to have some freedom - the same with letting the paint go and lead you a little, and then you work with where it takes you. You then have more of an equal relationship with the paint, rather than having it submit to ideas you already are master of.)
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