KG
AESTHETIC JUDGMENT
Discussion of the aesthetic quality of my work and how it reflects my artistic identity.
My inspirations consistently drive me towards representationalism and realism. I love motivating and challenging my abilities while imitating, illustrating, and even enhancing the things I see. I’ve always been very detail-oriented, as well as a bit of a perfectionist, so most of my artwork may reflect clear effort in depicting intricate detail and naturalistic qualities.
While I’ve found that absolutely anything and everything, whether consciously or unconsciously, factors into my habitual pursuits towards inspiration, much of my influence is derived from film or video games. Fictional films such as Lord of the Rings, Hunger Games, Maze Runner, and Chronicles of Narnia have dramatically affected the subjects or styles of my artwork; my favorite childhood pencil drawing features a cluster of Lord of the Rings characters. As I’ve advanced into high school and college, video games such as Overwatch and The Last of Us have played more prominent roles in my artistic aesthetics. These games elicit fascination and curiosity through intricate lore and stylistic design. My personal artworks, being a reflection of my mind, correspondingly reveal a deepening interest in these computerized aesthetics.
My art will always work to achieve some level of realism, as I’ve never willingly been an abstract artist. Portraiture and figurative styles are an ongoing study of mine as I continue to establish confidence in both wet and dry media. Typically when inspiration strikes, which is about 36 times a day, I like to organize my thoughts by digitally assembling reference boards and establishing a meaningful aesthetic.
To achieve a faultless level of naturalism will always be a dream of mine. At the same time, I enjoy falsifying reality to some extent, while maintaining only a snippet of realism. I continuously strive to distinguish myself as an artist who is particular in style, yet is driven towards accuracy.
Guilt, acrylic and oil on canvas, 2023
“Guilt” was a promptless portrait piece I completed in November of 2023, using a mixture of acrylic and oil paint. I worked to illustrate the subtle emotional appearance on my subject’s face, a look of desolate guilt, hence the name and aesthetics of this piece. I’d spent the semester studying wet media, specifically oil pigment, where I developed a preference for the lengthy yet satisfying process. With a partiality for portraiture and figurative styles, and by November, several weeks of oil-painting experience, I was itching to test my abilities in both domains.
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I started out with a portrait-focused collection of images from which I intended to choose a designated reference. I aspired to ensure one thing about these images: that each face reflected a subtle approach to an emotional state. Delicate indications of misery, anger, or even guilt, lie in an artist’s use of color, composition, and facial expressions. With this in mind, and a love for somber aesthetics, I inevitably found inspiration for my gloomy palette in the monochromatic world of The Last of Us- a digital game series characterized by its dark, desolate, and devastating atmosphere. Once developing these initial concepts, I utilized the grid method in securing an accurate sketch, dividing my canvas and reference image into nine equally-proportioned squares. The final product is a result of vast attention to detail, diligent layering, and tireless efforts in reflecting a dreary atmosphere.
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Weaker areas of this piece lie in the smaller details that could’ve been further polished, for instance the strands of hair, the ear, or even the acrylic background. Making note of these points, however, facilitates improvement as I move onto my next project. Other aspects, such as the subject’s proportional face, allow me to feel particularly successful about this piece, and reveal methods I plan to continue. I enjoy how this artwork strays away from classical approaches to portraiture, and instead aims to capture the subject in a momentary glance, as if she was caught in the midst of a reaction. I find this to be a true reflection of human rawness and naturalism, therefore being exemplary of my artistic focus.