Identity Painting

When I was creating my identity painting I wanted to really express the struggles and fears that I face on a daily basis. I wanted something simple yet with a lot of meaning behind it. I can’t really express how I’m feeling to people but when I paint or draw, my emotions just flow out of my mind and onto the canvas. To me, painting and drawing are an escape to where I can paint and just let loose. So in this painting, I wanted to express my anxiety and depression in a way that was easier for me. The painting basically tells you all that it’s the way I often feel. But most of the time nobody even notices it.

The process of me creating this painting was quite challenging. I’m not used to painting or drawing faces so this was definitely a step out of my comfort zone. It was also a struggle to get the highlighting just right and just all the little details in general. I did find that it helped to use a tiny detail brush for the hair, so it can look more realistic. Then I also used that same brush to do the highlights on the face. I used a tan color for the skin. Then I took a black sharpie and added words that are always running in my head and that never goe's away.

When I was creating this painting I wanted to show that people can struggle with things and nobody may ever notice. I want everyone to think that you never know what people are going through, so don’t judge or criticize people especially if you don’t know them. I myself wish people knew that I struggle and that sometimes the smile on my face isn’t real. So I just want everyone to be kind and never judge people when you don’t even know their story.

For me, the most difficult part of me creating this portrait was the hair and the nose. It was a struggle to make sure the hair looked realistic. It was also a struggle to make the nose look good. While the hair and the nose may not look the best, I tried my best and that's good enough for me. Mabey in a way it's a sign that even if you want to fix something or you're insecure about something you can never change it. And that's ok because we are all beautiful and unique in our own way.

This painting is definitely realistic and is supposed to be me with a few changes of course. Like the hair color is off just a little bit. This painting is unique to me because it's basically my life and what I go through on a daily basis. I really love how it is simple yet has a lot of meaning behind it. I feel like this may be one of my favorite paintings I have ever done.