Current Portrait
Reviews
Artist: Jamie Lee McMahan
Cordova, Tennessee.
Subject: Dr. Shirley Raines
President, The University of Memphis
Oil on canvas, 40 x 32 inches.
his remarkable painting is a tour de force of technical
skill. The pose is a conventional portrait "three-quarter,"
but the artist has transformed the subject matter by his refreshing
and dashing brush handling. The several points at which the
artist merges the contours of the figure with the tones of
the background add excitement and movement. The sparkling
background, with its playful and imaginative brushwork, lifts
the portrait out of the realm of the ordinary into a fresh,
contemporary liveliness which is captivating.
With all the vigor of the brushwork, the artist gives us a
well-drawn and convincing head and hands, modeled with careful
and authentic color, but with a fresh modernity.
Don't fail to note that the two strong blues of the robe are
perfectly complimented by the touches of orange and red. The
master touch of the painting is the cool reflected light in
the shadows of the face. J.H.S.
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