Pablo Picasso, Celestina, oil on canvas , 244′ 0″ x 192′ 0″, 1904
Jackie Turley, Acrylic on canvas, 18 x 24”, 2015
I had way to much fun with this project. I have a strong respect for Picasso’s earlier works and his Celestina is one of my favorites. This was from his blue period when he depicted everyone in a faintly depressed light. I choose read and green for my complementary colors on this painting and I have to say I really liked the results. I didn’t run into trouble with this piece. It was a fairly relaxing piece. I particularly like the effect of the reddish brown cloak in contrast with the green hair and red skin. I downplayed the colors a bit, I’m not a fan of bright colors. I did do some slight alterations to the piece. As you can see I have added in glaring eyes into the background and my Celestina has a slightly pointy ear. The one problem I have is the glare you can see at the bottom left corner of the piece. Once again this stemmed from camera troubles. I am satisfied with the final piece. I really liked how the particular color schematic I choose work together. I also felt the I managed to keep the proportions fairly accurate which is something I have difficulty with.
Wow, you chose a difficult painting to recreate within the perimeters of this project! The original is so monochromatic – the only thing I see that isn’t blue is a faint blush of pink on her cheeks. It must have been hard to determine where to incorporate secondary colors without compromising the image.
Using red in the place of blue highlights and deepens the impact of the subject’s imperfections – especially that in her weird-looking eye. However, it makes her seem not only slightly nonstandard in appearance, but also a little crooked, or evil. The red really gives her a look of fierceness.
Working the green subtly into the background was a good choice as well. It gives visual contrast without taking emphasis off of the figure. The eyes in the background are a bit creepy/distracting to me.
Overall, I think your work is successful!