My self-portrait was inspired by Frida Kahlo and her addressing identity, death, and the body, reflecting how she began painting after suffering serious injuries in a bus accident. Her portrait, Thinking of Death, has a skull-and-crossbones on her forehead representing death, a recurrent motif in her art, signifying her ongoing reflection on mortality.
I aimed to invert these features with death / dullness being grey and the flowers sprouting from my head symbolising creativity. Turkish traditional necklaces reflect my cultural background, like Kahlo does with her own culture though her own art. Similarly, initiating discussion with my viewers through direct eye contact. The flowers symbolise perseverance and healing, reflecting my view of my relationship with life. Yellow blossoms, resembling zinnias, stand for hope and brightness among the general gloom of the dullness. The foliage includes a purple Mallow flower -the root of my name- and deepens the meaning of finding creativity in a dull environment.
It was difficult to create the right skin tones, resulting in colour variations but, despite this, the shading method — layering skin tones on top of shadow — created smooth transitions between flesh and shadow, improving the painting’s overall realism.
Whilst difficult to capture detail and achieve precise proportions, I’m happy with the finished artwork as it’s realistic and bears a resemblance to me. Though it wasn’t my intention, I feel that the shading around my mouth, may be too dramatic, making my face stiff and critical. The self-portrait component was slightly lost in the finished painting, even though in my original drawing I tried to achieve a strong, intense stare similar to Kahlo’s, making direct eye contact with the viewer. Key components like the silver necklace and the flowers were produced beautifully and successfully communicated the intended symbolism.
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