Untitled (Self-Portrait Still Life)
Acrylic on Canvas - 16"x20"
Winter 2009-2010

I chose a variety of objects that were reflective of me- both physically and metaphorically. I represented my love of books, music, and art with the three "primary" objects in the painting - a CD, camera with film, and a novel, as well as my favorite dress as a background and a glass bottle with a necklace of great sentiment to me. The canvas was then turned in to a diptych - juxtaposing some of the loveliest things in my life with a roll of film negatives on the left side, all of the lowest points in my life referenced in each photo. It was painted with a series of washes of acrylic paint - that is, I mixed shades of acrylic paint with water and then brushed them on lightly to let the natural white of the canvas lighten it from the back (considering my darker color scheme), each wash was based off of the primary background - the muter grey-blue color of the fabric and tweaked with other colors to make it blend better and be a more cohesive piece.