Portrait of a Sister

Acrylic on canvas 30” x 24” March 2019

When creating this piece I aimed to embody three different themes including family, connections, and value. This portrait’s subject matter is my sister who holds great importance in my life. When starting the process of creating this artwork I chose a medium that would both complement her personality traits while also representing the intimacy within our relationship. Additionally, I took into consideration the scale of the canvas as well as the amount of negative space within the painting. I determined that I would use a canvas large in scale and less negative space to allow her key features to be apparent. Originally I had chosen to include the background of cars, buildings, and trees. However, after giving in consideration, I determined that making the background a solid complementary color would allow the only focus to be on the subject matter. This furthered the idea of value and connections as the viewer had nothing else to focus on other than the subject matter. Through this body of work, I aim to inflict the personal connections that I share with the figure in the portrait onto the viewer. Furthermore, I aspire to create a warm and welcoming feeling within the viewer while also creating an understanding of the value that the figure holds.