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Madamoiselle M
Well, two of the four threads that I have posted on this Forum have been closed, so I am hoping that this one will generate a little less passion but hopefully the same interest.
This is a portrait that I have just completed of my daughter, Megan, entitled 'Madamoiselle M'. (The paint is still wet, hence the "glisten" on the photo. My apologies.) The reference to Sargent's "Madam X" is intentional, although it is primarily to content rather than style. In JSS's portrait we see a woman who is self-assured and extremely proud. In my daughter (17 years old here) I see a girl who is far more unsure, shy and awkward than Sargent's model. Although the pose is similar in both paintings, the way the subjects hold the pose tells us an enormous amount about their character.
One of the challenges that confronted me in this painting was the black dress. I actually used very little black in the dress, and relied more on viridian, dioxazine purple, and magenta. I was rather pleased at the way it turned out -- perhaps a little too well, from a portrait's perspective, as the dress tends to steal the show.
I will also post the source photograph. One thing (amongst many) that I have learned from this Forum is the importance of the source photo. This is not a good one and was taken before I became a member here. I also usually do not just take one photo, but several of various parts of the model.
Please tell me what you think. The dimensions of the painting are 30" x 20".
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