Original artwork description:

This is an expressive, gestural painting, heavily textured. The paint has been applied in layers using a palette knife. The emphasis is on the expression in the eyes and the mood of the piece. There is a dark, psychological feel but with an inherently human emotion.

It's all in the eyes, I really enjoyed applying the heavy texture and raw marks on this piece. Looking at it close-up it dissolves into the colours and marks and the facial expression only really appears from a distance.

Sal's emotionally charged paintings, portraying, primarily, fictional subjects, capture the action of expression out of context whilst transforming the stereotypical portrait. Using subjects that she has sourced from cinema and popular culture she creates works that explore human reaction and empathy on a personal level.
Her work investigates our love of the dramatic, focusing on scenes of questioning, love, betrayal, and power-play; along with titles originating from dialogue, they invite the viewer to share and empathise with this inner world of familiar strangers.
The painted surface draws attention to the process of painting and to the artist’s choices in transforming the photographic source image.

Materials used:

oil paint

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