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The Newton North Senior Year Project Page:
http://nnhssyp.wikispaces.com/2012+Project+Page
Final Paper
Introduction
I am examining the differences between abstraction and realism in portraiture. Both can lead to successful communications of either the subject’s life or emotion, or of the artist’s emotions or message. I believe that while abstract art as an entire genera can be profound and can require a large amount of skill and discipline, realism is a more generally practical and accessible way to create a portrait. As I explain later in the paper, while an abstract portrait can have incredibly deep meaning to the artist, the subject, or anyone who is viewing it, it does not always meet the definition that most traditional portraits fall under.
In my fieldwork, I have been using more realism than abstraction. I am doing this because I think that to create good abstract art, an artist must first become very technically skilled at creating realistic art. I am not yet developed enough as an artist to be able to say whether I will be able to use abstraction successfully eventually, but for now I need to continue to develop my technical skill. Part of this project for me is to get to know myself better as an artist by painting. I have hoped that
Section I
Brief History/Background of function of Portraiture
The function of portraiture has changed over time as other means of visual representation have been developed. Portraiture, along with all other forms of painting, was transformed with the introduction of photography. Once photography became the most efficient type of portrait, the role of painting changed from a practical means of recording a person’s life to a way of expressing the emotion of either the artist or the artist’s subject.
However, the basic function of a portrait, to set the subject apart from everyone else, to show what makes them different, has remained constant throughout the history of portrait painting.
Originally, portraits were used to communicate the essence of a person’s entire life. The earliest portraits still in existence are from the fertile crescent, in Egypt in specific. Most portraits were of gods and great rulers, to worship or commemorate significant figures which had an influence on most people’s lives. Most of these paintings were highly stylized, and did not serve the purpose of creating a likeness to their subject, but rather an item of worship. Affluent people in ancient Egypt also had funeral paintings done and buried wrapped into the mummy wrappings with their preserved corpses. They are encaustic(wax and pigment) on wood or ivory boards. these paintings start to become more realistic, but still have exaggerated features, most have enlarged eyes and not all of them are skillfully painted. (2nd to 4th century AD)
There was little to no portrait painting in 4th Century AD Rome, but many realistic stone sculptures survive from that era. At the request of the subjects, these portraits err on the side of realism, even when it would not be the most flattering option.
In the middle ages, portraiture went back to the unrealistic style of ancient Egypt, Most art was commissioned by the church, and artists were told to idealize the features of important religious figures. There were several distinct features which were believed to show personality traits and virtues. In portraits and descriptions of the Virgin Mary, she was shown to have an oval face, light brown hair, arched eyebrows, fair skin, and an energetic deportment. [1] The church decided to have her portrayed this way not because it was how she actually looked, but because these features were supposed to show that she was a virtuous person, and that she was both relatable and human, While also being divine.
The Renaissance also marked a large change in the function of portraiture. Portraits changed from not only items of worship or commemoration to communications of social class and wealth. They were used to show off the successes of the subject. Paintings, portraits in particular, became highly valued by society, allowing the artists to use their trade as a way to make a good living, and to gain the respect of society for their artistic talent.
During the 1400s-1600s there were many innovations in portrait painting, some of which remained in common use until photography was introduced. With the introduction of oil painting as the medium of choice for most portrait painters came a rise in highly detailed and realistic portraits. Most portraits were still of important figures in the church, very wealthy people, and of members of the royal family. Oil paint also allowed for much more realistic depictions of the lavish clothing and jewels worn by Royals, wealthy people, and the leaders of the church. The popularity of oil paint began in northern europe, spreading quickly to all portrait painters across Europe.
During the Baroque and Rococo periods portraits became an even more important expression of status. In a society which was beginning to rely less and less on religious figures as a form of government, these portraits helped to distinguish important men.
The introduction of photography was the cause of a huge change in all visual art, painting in particular. The main purpose of painting had been to record events and achievements. Photography took over those functions, causing painters to start to explore other styles, not just the hyper realism which they had been using. By the late 1800’s most strict realism had given way to impressionist work. At the time when impressionism was most popular with artists, it was not very popular with upper class people, so the expressionists did not enjoy the financial and social advantages that many realist portrait artists had received. Artists were living off of less money and pursuing a more true expression of human emotion through deviations from realism.
Painters also started to explore new subject matter, and new styles of painting. While many french artists were experimenting with impressionism, there were several prominent american artists who had more success financially than the impressionists. John Singer Sargent was one of the most successful portrait painters at the time, and he completely disregarded both impressionism and post-expressionism, opting for a more realistic style but often using bright splashes of color and visible brush strokes.
The american artist, Thomas Eakins experimented with new and unique subject matter. Some of his more famous works are paintings of doctors performing surgery.
Section II
What is the purpose of portraiture?
There are several largely agreed upon criteria which can define a portrait. “(i) a living being as a unique individual, by means of an individually recognizable visage and (ii) an expression of inner life, implying a sense of self-identity (5), where (iii) the subject is complicit in the project (17) and, at best, (iv) presented through the subject's individual ‘essence’ or ‘air.’’ -Cynthia Freeland, in her essay, Portraits and Persons: A Philosophical Inquiry
The purpose of a portrait is communicate the subject’s life, either a moment, or a lifetime. Paintings which communicate an emotion of the artist, using the subject as a vehicle to get an emotion which is not related to the subject across also do not meet these criteria. To communicate a concept or an idea larger than either the model or the artist is a different type of painting.
Section III
Effective communication of subject
A significant part of my research has consisted of studying portraits, and I have continually been drawn to the work of early expressionists, Egon Schile in particular. I thinhk that the balance which he strikes between realism and abstraction is a very effective means of showing the true emotion of the subject, and the relationship between artist and subject.
Although his work is completely different from most other artists of his time, John Singer Sargent also found a close to perfect mixture of abstraction and realism. He did not use the same delicate brush strokes and thin coats of paint portrait artists before him had used, which created a new and unique energy which could not be shown through the more traditional styles.
Often, abstraction can be used to convey what the artist believes to be a more accurate expression of his or her emotion than a realistic portrait can. This can often make the subject much less present in the painting, the artist is using their subject as a vehicle to make a statement more than making an attempt to express the subject’s emotion or personality.
Pose/arrangement of objects around the subject -> Significance?
a. Composition can determine whether a portrait is a communication of a moment, or of the subject’s entire life. In many early portraits of royalty and wealthy people, the subjects would arrange objects around themselves which would represent various successes that they had had in life. This type of portrait faded in popularity as portraiture became less exclusively reserved for influential people and more widely available.
The shift in portrait subject’s social status came about as artists began to experiment with different styles, beginning with romanticism, impressionism, and expressionism. When they stopped painting as many commissioned pieces
Many artists use background as a way to focus the eye on the subject, more as a framework than as a detailed part of the painting. More simplified backgrounds often serve to help convey one specific emotion or moment for either the subject or the artist.
Section V
My experience creating paintings for this project
For my fieldwork I have painted portraits of three subjects aged 17, 51, and 80. Painting these portraits has taught me how to make choices about style and composition. It has also helped me to develop my technical skills in the same way that any figure study does. Study of the figure has long been an integral part of artistic training. Over the course of my high school career I have taken several classes which have given me the opportunity to study the figure. It has not only improved my skill in gesture and long study figure drawings, it has also improved the quality of all of my other work when I am drawing from the figure on a regular basis.
a. Planning
Much of my best work has been quick gesture drawings of the figure. I wanted to expand my skills into another form of figure study which would build on my strengths. Painting portraits allows me to expand my [skills] in figure study with the new(to me) context of considering the subject’s emotion as well as his or her physical traits. I think that the key difference between a portrait and a figure study lies in the relationship between the subject and the artist. In a figure study, I try to view the subject objectively, using their form to practice creating a human likeness. Often a single emotion can come across in a figure study, but it does not attempt to express the soul of the subject. A portrait make an attempt to communicate the subject’s soul, his or her emotional state of being, not just a brief or fleeting feeling, but the state of being overall, the tone which the subject’s life in general takes. It is much easier to concentrate on physical likeness in a drawing or painting which makes an attempt only to express physical likeness.
b. Style and Composition
I have, without making an entirely conscious decision to, begun to develop a painting style which is mainly realistic. I do not always use color which is true to my observation, and I often separate shadows and highlights into blocks of color in the shape of the plane they are hitting. I attempt to draw proportionally correct figures in compositions which ground them. Most of my paintings give a feeling of plausibility without being photo realistic.
I have chosen fairly simple compositions for all of my portraits, cropping the figure, and having it take up most of the canvas. I have done mostly simplistic backgrounds, using the architecture of the room which the subject was sitting in to frame and draw the eye to the figure. It is important in a portrait to have the subject as the focal point in the painting. Because of this, many successful portrait artists simplify the background, and even alter it so that the lines and planes draw the eye to the subject’s face.
c. Satisfaction with final products(?)
I am satisfied with what I have produced so far, but I would like to work on all three of the paintings more, to give them a more complete look. I am happy with what I have done, given the amount of time I have had to work on them. I had to scale the amount of paintings down from four to three. I think that this was the right decision given that the quality of my work would have suffered if I had rushed through the paintings to finish more in the same amount of time. Given the opportunity to go back and change how I approached my fieldwork, I would change the scale, and I would be more planful about keeping my stylistic choices consistent throughout all three paintings.
[1] Patrick Singleton, Masters Thesis, Character and Spirit, Pg. 15, Paper:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1x1I70ZWs6FAA_TsvYYEj4pAk0g_ZE5pklI84KMYQZXQ/edit

The Newton North Senior Year Project Page:
http://nnhssyp.wikispaces.com/2012+Project+Page
Final Paper
Introduction
I am examining the differences between abstraction and realism in portraiture. Both can lead to successful communications of either the subject’s life or emotion, or of the artist’s emotions or message. I believe that while abstract art as an entire genera can be profound and can require a large amount of skill and discipline, realism is a more generally practical and accessible way to create a portrait. As I explain later in the paper, while an abstract portrait can have incredibly deep meaning to the artist, the subject, or anyone who is viewing it, it does not always meet the definition that most traditional portraits fall under.
In my fieldwork, I have been using more realism than abstraction. I am doing this because I think that to create good abstract art, an artist must first become very technically skilled at creating realistic art. I am not yet developed enough as an artist to be able to say whether I will be able to use abstraction successfully eventually, but for now I need to continue to develop my technical skill. Part of this project for me is to get to know myself better as an artist by painting. I have hoped that
Section I
Brief History/Background of function of Portraiture
The function of portraiture has changed over time as other means of visual representation have been developed. Portraiture, along with all other forms of painting, was transformed with the introduction of photography. Once photography became the most efficient type of portrait, the role of painting changed from a practical means of recording a person’s life to a way of expressing the emotion of either the artist or the artist’s subject.
However, the basic function of a portrait, to set the subject apart from everyone else, to show what makes them different, has remained constant throughout the history of portrait painting.
Originally, portraits were used to communicate the essence of a person’s entire life. The earliest portraits still in existence are from the fertile crescent, in Egypt in specific. Most portraits were of gods and great rulers, to worship or commemorate significant figures which had an influence on most people’s lives. Most of these paintings were highly stylized, and did not serve the purpose of creating a likeness to their subject, but rather an item of worship. Affluent people in ancient Egypt also had funeral paintings done and buried wrapped into the mummy wrappings with their preserved corpses. They are encaustic(wax and pigment) on wood or ivory boards. these paintings start to become more realistic, but still have exaggerated features, most have enlarged eyes and not all of them are skillfully painted. (2nd to 4th century AD)
There was little to no portrait painting in 4th Century AD Rome, but many realistic stone sculptures survive from that era. At the request of the subjects, these portraits err on the side of realism, even when it would not be the most flattering option.
In the middle ages, portraiture went back to the unrealistic style of ancient Egypt, Most art was commissioned by the church, and artists were told to idealize the features of important religious figures. There were several distinct features which were believed to show personality traits and virtues. In portraits and descriptions of the Virgin Mary, she was shown to have an oval face, light brown hair, arched eyebrows, fair skin, and an energetic deportment. [1] The church decided to have her portrayed this way not because it was how she actually looked, but because these features were supposed to show that she was a virtuous person, and that she was both relatable and human, While also being divine.
The Renaissance also marked a large change in the function of portraiture. Portraits changed from not only items of worship or commemoration to communications of social class and wealth. They were used to show off the successes of the subject. Paintings, portraits in particular, became highly valued by society, allowing the artists to use their trade as a way to make a good living, and to gain the respect of society for their artistic talent.
During the 1400s-1600s there were many innovations in portrait painting, some of which remained in common use until photography was introduced. With the introduction of oil painting as the medium of choice for most portrait painters came a rise in highly detailed and realistic portraits. Most portraits were still of important figures in the church, very wealthy people, and of members of the royal family. Oil paint also allowed for much more realistic depictions of the lavish clothing and jewels worn by Royals, wealthy people, and the leaders of the church. The popularity of oil paint began in northern europe, spreading quickly to all portrait painters across Europe.
During the Baroque and Rococo periods portraits became an even more important expression of status. In a society which was beginning to rely less and less on religious figures as a form of government, these portraits helped to distinguish important men.
The introduction of photography was the cause of a huge change in all visual art, painting in particular. The main purpose of painting had been to record events and achievements. Photography took over those functions, causing painters to start to explore other styles, not just the hyper realism which they had been using. By the late 1800’s most strict realism had given way to impressionist work. At the time when impressionism was most popular with artists, it was not very popular with upper class people, so the expressionists did not enjoy the financial and social advantages that many realist portrait artists had received. Artists were living off of less money and pursuing a more true expression of human emotion through deviations from realism.
Painters also started to explore new subject matter, and new styles of painting. While many french artists were experimenting with impressionism, there were several prominent american artists who had more success financially than the impressionists. John Singer Sargent was one of the most successful portrait painters at the time, and he completely disregarded both impressionism and post-expressionism, opting for a more realistic style but often using bright splashes of color and visible brush strokes.
The american artist, Thomas Eakins experimented with new and unique subject matter. Some of his more famous works are paintings of doctors performing surgery.
Section II
What is the purpose of portraiture?
There are several largely agreed upon criteria which can define a portrait. “(i) a living being as a unique individual, by means of an individually recognizable visage and (ii) an expression of inner life, implying a sense of self-identity (5), where (iii) the subject is complicit in the project (17) and, at best, (iv) presented through the subject's individual ‘essence’ or ‘air.’’ -Cynthia Freeland, in her essay, Portraits and Persons: A Philosophical Inquiry
The purpose of a portrait is communicate the subject’s life, either a moment, or a lifetime. Paintings which communicate an emotion of the artist, using the subject as a vehicle to get an emotion which is not related to the subject across also do not meet these criteria. To communicate a concept or an idea larger than either the model or the artist is a different type of painting.
Section III
Effective communication of subject
A significant part of my research has consisted of studying portraits, and I have continually been drawn to the work of early expressionists, Egon Schile in particular. I thinhk that the balance which he strikes between realism and abstraction is a very effective means of showing the true emotion of the subject, and the relationship between artist and subject.
Although his work is completely different from most other artists of his time, John Singer Sargent also found a close to perfect mixture of abstraction and realism. He did not use the same delicate brush strokes and thin coats of paint portrait artists before him had used, which created a new and unique energy which could not be shown through the more traditional styles.
Often, abstraction can be used to convey what the artist believes to be a more accurate expression of his or her emotion than a realistic portrait can. This can often make the subject much less present in the painting, the artist is using their subject as a vehicle to make a statement more than making an attempt to express the subject’s emotion or personality.
Pose/arrangement of objects around the subject -> Significance?
a. Composition can determine whether a portrait is a communication of a moment, or of the subject’s entire life. In many early portraits of royalty and wealthy people, the subjects would arrange objects around themselves which would represent various successes that they had had in life. This type of portrait faded in popularity as portraiture became less exclusively reserved for influential people and more widely available.
The shift in portrait subject’s social status came about as artists began to experiment with different styles, beginning with romanticism, impressionism, and expressionism. When they stopped painting as many commissioned pieces
Many artists use background as a way to focus the eye on the subject, more as a framework than as a detailed part of the painting. More simplified backgrounds often serve to help convey one specific emotion or moment for either the subject or the artist.
Section V
My experience creating paintings for this project
For my fieldwork I have painted portraits of three subjects aged 17, 51, and 80. Painting these portraits has taught me how to make choices about style and composition. It has also helped me to develop my technical skills in the same way that any figure study does. Study of the figure has long been an integral part of artistic training. Over the course of my high school career I have taken several classes which have given me the opportunity to study the figure. It has not only improved my skill in gesture and long study figure drawings, it has also improved the quality of all of my other work when I am drawing from the figure on a regular basis.
a. Planning
Much of my best work has been quick gesture drawings of the figure. I wanted to expand my skills into another form of figure study which would build on my strengths. Painting portraits allows me to expand my [skills] in figure study with the new(to me) context of considering the subject’s emotion as well as his or her physical traits. I think that the key difference between a portrait and a figure study lies in the relationship between the subject and the artist. In a figure study, I try to view the subject objectively, using their form to practice creating a human likeness. Often a single emotion can come across in a figure study, but it does not attempt to express the soul of the subject. A portrait make an attempt to communicate the subject’s soul, his or her emotional state of being, not just a brief or fleeting feeling, but the state of being overall, the tone which the subject’s life in general takes. It is much easier to concentrate on physical likeness in a drawing or painting which makes an attempt only to express physical likeness.
b. Style and Composition
I have, without making an entirely conscious decision to, begun to develop a painting style which is mainly realistic. I do not always use color which is true to my observation, and I often separate shadows and highlights into blocks of color in the shape of the plane they are hitting. I attempt to draw proportionally correct figures in compositions which ground them. Most of my paintings give a feeling of plausibility without being photo realistic.
I have chosen fairly simple compositions for all of my portraits, cropping the figure, and having it take up most of the canvas. I have done mostly simplistic backgrounds, using the architecture of the room which the subject was sitting in to frame and draw the eye to the figure. It is important in a portrait to have the subject as the focal point in the painting. Because of this, many successful portrait artists simplify the background, and even alter it so that the lines and planes draw the eye to the subject’s face.
c. Satisfaction with final products(?)
I am satisfied with what I have produced so far, but I would like to work on all three of the paintings more, to give them a more complete look. I am happy with what I have done, given the amount of time I have had to work on them. I had to scale the amount of paintings down from four to three. I think that this was the right decision given that the quality of my work would have suffered if I had rushed through the paintings to finish more in the same amount of time. Given the opportunity to go back and change how I approached my fieldwork, I would change the scale, and I would be more planful about keeping my stylistic choices consistent throughout all three paintings.
[1] Patrick Singleton, Masters Thesis, Character and Spirit, Pg. 15,

Topic: Portraiture
Question: How is personal experience portrayed in the portrait form?
Thesis:

{Top-32_edited-5.jpeg} Lithograph of Yvette Guilbert by Toulouse Lautrec {JOlsson_Degas_charcoal_drawing.jpeg} Degas

The Mask and the Face: the perception of physiognomic likeness in life and in art By E.H. Gombrich in Art, Perception and Reality:
I have not yet finished reading this essay, but I think that it will be useful to my research and to my field work, in that it explores the role of caricature in portraiture. It examines what it is about a face and a painting of that face make it so that we can see likeness between the two. It acknowledges that realism is not always the most effective way to create a portrait, but that exaggeration can often be much more specific to and expressive of the subject of the portrait than realism.
Sketches for Final Portraits:
{20120209121146.jpg} This is the first sketch I did for one of the portraits.
{20120209121257.jpg} I was not satisfied with the proportions of the face in my first sketch, so I did this close up of his face, to get it right.

The Mask and the Face: the perception of physiognomic likeness in life and in art By E.H. Gombrich in Art, Perception and Reality:
I have not yet finished reading this essay, but I think that it will be useful to my research and to my field work, in that it explores the role of caricature in portraiture. It examines what it is about a face and a painting of that face make it so that we can see likeness between the two. It acknowledges that realism is not always the most effective way to create a portrait, but that exaggeration can often be much more specific to and expressive of the subject of the portrait than realism.
{20120209121146.jpg} This is the first sketch I did for one of the portraits.
{20120209121257.jpg} I was not satisfied with the proportions of the face in my first sketch, so I did this close up of his face, to get it right.
{20120209121339.jpg} This is my most recent sketch for this painting, and this is the composition which I plan to use for the final painting.