(05) Capturing a likeness

Quick research 08

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception 08

Walking round the National Gallery while thinking about my portrait project, I snapped these close-ups of paintings I liked, selecting them for their range of styles and treatments. Live models would have been used by the artists in all cases, but in some, only as a starting point.

Portrait of Susanna Lunden by Peter Paul Rubens [Cat: (05) CAPTURING A LIKENESS 014]

Quick research 07

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception 07

Walking round the National Gallery while thinking about my portrait project, I snapped these close-ups of paintings I liked, selecting them for their range of styles and treatments. Live models would have been used by the artists in all cases, but in some, only as a starting point.

Women’s heads: Detail, The Way to Calvary by Jacopo Bassano [Cat: (05) CAPTURING A LIKENESS 008]

Quick research 06

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception 06

Walking round the National Gallery while thinking about my portrait project, I snapped these close-ups of paintings I liked, selecting them for their range of styles and treatments. Live models would have been used by the artists in all cases, but in some, only as a starting point.

Hand details – Portrait of Johan de Reus by Nicolas Maes [Cat: (05) CAPTURING A LIKENESS 009]

Quick research 05

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception 05

Walking round the National Gallery while thinking about my portrait project, I snapped these close-ups of paintings I liked, selecting them for their range of styles and treatments. Live models would have been used by the artists in all cases, but in some, only as a starting point.

Portrait of Johan de Reus by Nicolas Maes [Cat: (05) CAPTURING A LIKENESS 013]

Quick research 04

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception 04

Walking round the National Gallery while thinking about my portrait project, I snapped these close-ups of paintings I liked, selecting them for their range of styles and treatments. Live models would have been used by the artists in all cases, but in some, only as a starting point.

Portrait of Johan de Reus by Nicolas Maes [Cat: (05) CAPTURING A LIKENESS 011]

Quick research 03

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception 03

Walking round the National Gallery while thinking about my portrait project, I snapped these close-ups of paintings I liked, selecting them for their range of styles and treatments. Live models would have been used by the artists in all cases, but in some, only as a starting point.

Portrait of young man in black hat: Detail, Jan Vermeer [Cat: (05) CAPTURING A LIKENESS 015]

Quick research 02

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception 02

Walking round the National Gallery while thinking about my portrait project, I snapped these close-ups of paintings I liked, selecting them for their range of styles and treatments. Live models would have been used by the artists in all cases, but in some, only as a starting point.

Man in red hat playing flute: Detail, The Concert by Hendrick ter Brugghen [Cat: (05) CAPTURING A LIKENESS 016]

Quick research 01

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception 01

Walking round the National Gallery while thinking about my portrait project, I snapped these close-ups of paintings I liked, selecting them for their range of styles and treatments. Live models would have been used by the artists in all cases, but in some, only as a starting point.

Female head in white turban: Detail, The Concert by Hendrick ter Brugghen [Cat: (05) CAPTURING A LIKENESS 017]

Portraits

#capturingalikeness – observation and perception

The portrait is the real test of an artist’s skills, and even if an artist never tackles the subject it will always be there before them as a challenge, so why not tackle it head on?

Portraits by artists from Rembrandt to Saville are among our greatest works of art; the observation and perception of character goes beyond mere paint on canvas. The ultimate test – the self-portrait.

Self-portrait with Maggie Town
Self-portrait with Maggie Town [Cat: 0309, San Pedro, 5 x 7″ / 13 x 18 cm, Watercolour on board, 2003]