It was possibly a David Attenborough programme, possibly not, but I once recall hearing it said that to live in the wild when you might get predated, you have to learn how to recognise a face. It’s a weird concept & makes me all the more curious about the consciousness of animals. What’s it like to be an animal? What is their thinking like? When you have language, it’s hard to understand that other communication methods are available & how they might enable a creature to think. Anyway, I’m getting away from faces there so never mind my cognitive wanderings. Faces. Portraits. Likenesses. Let’s go.
Ken Currie (b. 1960), Unknown Man, 2019
The title suggests the person on the table is the real portrait & perhaps in a way it is. Nevertheless the likeness of forensic anthropologist Sue Black is staggering. I may have said this before but it’s one of these paintings that’s even better (& bigger) when you’re standing in front of it.
Alexander Goudie (1933-2004), Drummer Boy, c. 1985
I’m very fond of this little painting, not least because it’s of Alexander’s son Lachlan. As mentioned in previous blogs, I’m a bit fan of Lachlan, whose own paintings continue where the Scottish Colourists left off. He’s even more Colourist than his dad, who created many portraits. One wonders what he’d have made of his son’s career as an author & fantastic art broadcaster as well an artist. One things for certain: Lachlan promotes his father’s art whenever he gets the chance & whenever he can make reference to his influence on him in his programmes, he does so. It’s a beautiful thing.
Jamie Coreth (1990?), Portrait of Fatima, 2019
Conversely, this incredible piece of work was much smaller than I’d imagined. There it was, plastered over half of Aberdeen in close-up & on six foot high posters as winner of the 2020 BP Portrait Awards. It’s testament to Coreth’s brilliance that the work can be scaled up so enormously & retain its beauty, detail & quality of brushwork.
Robert Colquhoun (1914-1962), John, the artist's brother, c. 1941
Another Scottish artist, Colquhoun made prints & theatre set designs as well as paintings. After being trendy & celebrated early on, he & his partner artist Robert MacBryde later fell on harder times as they descended into alcoholism. They were however trailblazers, collaborating & experimenting with many styles & coming up with beautifully stylised images such as this.
Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939), Tochter Jaroslava (Jarca), 1929
I do love to see an artist’s works in progress or at least how their artistic process works. Unlike his more vividly coloured works, this sensitive piece by Mucha shows something of that process. I don’t care what anyone says, if you paint well, it stands to reason you must be decent at drawing first. It’s beautiful work & you get the sense it’s a true likeness.
Yasutomo Oka (b. 1983)
Yasutomo Oka’s incredible paintings often achieve even more photo-realism than this. He also achieves good likenesses & if you search his name, you’ll often see his models standing next to the paintings. It’s a point worth proving in his game. What sets him apart from other “photo-realists” in my opinion is his subtle & delicate use of light.
Françoise Nielly (1960), Wesley, 2020
Nielly’s bold use of size, colour & style are almost reminiscent of street art. She uses a knife to apply the paint & this knife-work has somewhat cheesily been described as “slashing” the faces. They had a point though, haha.
Chloe Wise (b. 1990), Tormentedly Untainted, 2019
Just stylised enough to be unbelievable, this combination of gaudy colour, intense lighting & almost hyper-reality has an arresting effect. Wise often features hands in her art & why wouldn’t you? Incredible work. Again: HUGE.
Nick Lepard (b. 1983), The Architect Man
It’s a Picasso-esque idea, tinkering about with the planes of the face & the splashes & vivid brushstrokes make sense when viewed as the whole. In fact, when you look at this painting as a thumbnail, you barely notice the oddness.
Vilhelm Hammershøi (1864–1916), Portrait of a Young Woman, the artist's sister Anna Hammershøi, 1885
As understated as Wise is vivid, Hammershøi’s painting of his sister is at once intimate & distant. Although it’s an almost tender portrait, I feel there’s a sense of unease in the relationship between artist & model. She appears to be about to move & it’s unclear whether she’s uncomfortable as a sitter or if there’s something out of view that is distracting her.
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