|
WOW! Ilaria, your improvisations are really terrific. In both portraits I think you've caught something I can't quite put my finger on, but it's really alive and sensitive to who they are. With all the trouble you've had painting the younger brother compared to the older brother, this doesn't show at all in the latest versions. What impresses me is that you didn't run out of steam with the second one, but you persevered and worked through the difficulties, so that these portraits are equal in quality and in what they say about the subjects. So often, the artist's preference for one over the other (personally, compositionally, etc.) shows in the final product. I've been guilty of that myself.
There's only one nitpicking critique I can think of right now, and that is in the background of the older boy's portrait. The lamp on the right is a little distracting, I think because there are some sharp edges where the light is shining out under the shade, and also because it is bright and warm in comparison to the cooler light on the boy's face. If you could pull the focus away from that spot by adjusting the edges/temperature, I think this would be less distracting.
|