Do your features and personality come out in your paintings of others?

[Renee Brown]

Thomasin,

First of all I really enjoyed your stage paintings, and they immediately reminded me of Degas. I love it when light is the subject.

I have to say that I believe it is impossible to separate the artist from the sitter. Since the sub conscious is at work 24/7 ,one should really be asking the people who see and know the artist, if they think autobiographical material is present in the finished work. Plus, I believe if the artist and the sitter have a meeting of the minds, a great rapport, etc., this will be even more pronounced.

The technical features may be the sitters, but the eyes , the gestures will also say, "artist". Kind of a "Kilroy was here!", or your initials carved into the tree.

My family immediately identifies our family members and myself in almost all of my paintings. Granted this happens more often in non portrait paintings, but unless a robot is painting the portrait, then yes, the artist creeps in, wanted or unwanted.

"Everything is autobiographical and everything is a portrait." - Lucian Freud

"Everything is Autobiographical"-Freud

A friend of ours had a book published recently, and when I asked him if he thought it was autobiographical ( it screamed autobiography), he said, "Oh, no"! I loved that.

Renee

[Enzie Shahmiri]

I hope that my likeness does not come through in commissioned portraits, but I have noticed that I gravitate to the colors I love and keep putting them in. Something about the mood of the painting is often mine as well and that has to do with the type of poses and the particular gazes of the subject that I keep gravitating too.

So in response to your question

How much of yourself comes through in your paintings of other people?

I have to say quite a bit!