Entry A
11″ x 14″, oil on canvas
“Mystery creates wonder and wonder is the basis of man’s desire to understand.” This quote reflects my thoughts while I was gazing at a painting by Rembrandt at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. Rembrandt is known for his portraits of other people and his self-portraits in which he demonstrates a masterful use of light in dark – shading the faces of his subjects and bringing them out of the canvas. He illustrates different expressions and moods throughout his portraits with such realism that the viewers are drawn to the expressions on these faces. Some of these expressions leave the viewer wondering due to its apparent mystery and lack of context, most famously in his self-portrait Rembrandt Laughing, the one I had been wondering about at the Getty Museum. What was he laughing at? Why was he laughing? With whom was he laughing? It’s a mystery. And this mystery causes viewers who are drawn to the jovial expression on Rembrandt’s face along with the beautiful use of shadowing on the right side of his face to want to understand more deeply.
This painting inspired me in the rendering of my own painting, Paige and Blake. Like Rembrandt, I sought to portray a similarly realistic facial expression, this time of my brother and me. In particular, I wanted to portray the expression of good hearted mischief on my brother’s face as we sat squished in this chair together. It is unclear why he has this mischievous look on his face and what plot we may be conspiring in together. Hopefully, I was able to capture a scene of love and connection between two siblings. If mystery produces wonder which produces a desire to understand, I hope viewers of my painting will seek to understand the mysterious bond and love between two siblings.”