Andrea Demmin Tasevski: Art Gallery Visit #3 & Art Material Exploration: Self-Portraits

Art Gallery Visit #3 and Art Material Exploration: Self-Portraits

Andrea Tasevski

Andrea Tasevski, Self-portrait at 45. Watercolor, 10" x 10", 2017.

Art Gallery Visit #3 and Art Material Exploration: Self-Portraits

1. Why did you select the inspiration pieces?

I selected the three inspiration because I was drawn to them, and because each one was done using a different medium. The Charles E. Burchfield self-portrait, painted when he was a young man in 1916 and is part of the Burchfield-Penney Art Center's permanent collection. Burchfield used a mixture of watercolor, pencil and conté crayon on paper. My favorite medium is soft pastel, but I also paint in watercolor, and am a signature member of the Niagara Frontier Watercolor Society.

The self-portrait of Frida Kahlo is part of the Albright Knox Art Gallery's permanent collection, and I have always been intrigued by her work. She painted many self-portraits, and this particular one, done in oil on masonite includes a monkey with his 'hand' resting lovingly on her shoulder.

Jack Edson's huge self-portrait quilt is in the the Art In Craft Media 2017 which is currently on view at the Burchfield-Penney Art Center. I was fascinated by his art-quilt. I love to sew and have created several quilts for family members, and it is so intriguing to see the fabric used to create such an amazing work of art.

2. Why did you select the media to create your self-portrait?

I selected watercolor to create my self-portrait because I also am painting pet portraits for customers for Christmas; watercolor takes time to dry before more layers can be added, and I often find it more efficient to work on more than one at time. When one painting is drying, I rotate to another one, and so on.

3. What challenges did you face in creating your self-portrait and how did you overcome them?

The big challenge for me was the fact that the photo I used is black and white, and I wanted to paint a self-portrait in color. I overcame this by relying on my experience painting portraits. I understand how to create skin tones, and I know what I look like when I check my mirror in the morning!

4. How does this piece represent you?

I have long curly hair that can get wild, and I love color, so I emphasized my hair by using lots of crazy color and showing it flying all over the place. I am both self-conscious and proud that I am an 'adult' college student, so I stenciled my age and painted it red in the bottom left -it is there for all to see and I am not ashamed to be 45, but the 'inner me' is many years younger!

5. What elements and principles of art did you apply in this work?

I used varying lines to emphasize my hair, and played with complimentary colors to achieve realistic skin-tones. I used a square format for my design and had my head slightly tilted to create a more interesting composition.

6. Did you enjoy working on this project?

I love painting my children and my niece and nephews, but I never want to paint myself. I am self-conscious about the way I look and am not comfortable enough to focus on the way I look.

7. What do you think of your final artwork?

I am 'ok' with my final artwork; I feel that my pastel portraits are stronger, but I really wanted to push myself out of my comfort zone and do a watercolor self-portrait. I particularly liked the Burchfied self-portrait, and that was done partly in watercolor, so I wanted to see if I could do something similar.