|
I always find engaging a portrait in which the subject looks directly at the viewer. There's a term used in fiction writing circles -- a "willing suspension of disbelief" -- that I feel comes into play in such a pose. We're able to get right into the story. I'm a very visually oriented person and when someone looks me in the eye, an energizing connection gets wired straight away.
The "hazard", if you will, of attracting that much attention to the eyes is that there's extremely little room for error in terms of placement and focus. There are a couple of other things going on here, but one impression that I can't get rid of is that the eyes are ever so gently crossed. I think the iris in the eye on the viewer's left could be very slightly enlarged toward the left (that is, toward the right side of the subject's face). I tapped a little felt-pen dot on a piece of clear plastic and held it up to create that revision, and it instantly looked better to me. The focal point of the eyes suddenly moved to exactly the center of my face. You might find it interesting to conduct the same unscientific experiment.
It's a little hard to judge other aspects of the eyes, because of another thing, and that's that the bottom half of the face seems to be turned farther to the left than the top half. We're clearly seeing one side of the nose and not the other, yet the eyes and forehead seem to be on a plane perpendicular to us. It's a tough call, but it seems to have to do with the quite ambiguous lighting and, particularly, the relative absence of any shadow cast upon the left side (viewer's) of the face, without which there doesn't seem to be a receding roundness to that side. I notice you have some shadow alongside the hood as it meets the right side of the face. I'd recommend introducing at least that much on the other side, to help create form and, especially, to "turn" the top of the head so it catches up with the bottom half. (Either that, or turn the nose back toward us a bit.)
Whatever the lighting source, even if from a camera flash, I'd also introduce shadow tone into the peak of the hood, in that upper triangle between the fabric and the hair. Don't make it black, just tone it down. Retain the lighted front edge. (I just did the felt-tip overlay again in that area -- a big enhancement, I think, in form of the hood shape.)
The hair, too, is a form affected by light and shadow. Consider introducing some shadow alongside the hood and perhaps more along the top as well, to create the effect of its receding back along the top of the head, underneath the hood and away from the light's influence. Even in some parts of the lighted area, you could go to a more solid value, partly just for variety, rather than trying to paint individual strands uniformly all the way across.
You might like the effect, as well, of restating some of the shadow shapes in the folds and creases of the fabrics. This isn't a setting with a lot of light in it, so those shadows are going to gradate from light to quite dark accents in places.
I've never worked in acrylics but I'm given to understand that they present a unique set of challenges. I'll have to leave discussion of that element to someone else.
I find that I'm quite liking the mood of the piece as I flip back and forth to it. I realize that you're going for an overall effect here, and some of my suggestions may not accommodate that, so pick and choose. Much of the figure work shown on your website is very nice as well.
Best wishes,
Steven
|
Self-portrait from newbie
Linear Mode
