Critiqued Assignment #2: Irony versus Sincerity / "Manic"

Abstract

This is a digital photograph of Irene Shepley's painting. It was submitted as the second critiqued assignment, "Irony versus Sincerity," on March 1, 2017 in Erin Harmon's Intermediate/Advanced Painting class. All pieces are 36x48 or larger; acrylic on canvas. The artist's statement reads: "Charged oranges, pinks, greens, blues, and yellows are muted by pale sage, greyed-violet, and beige. Tempestuous actions are tied to mundane activities; the hand is being pressed with an iron, the toothbrush is abusing the head, and the vacuum is dissipating the head. The viewer’s eye is moved from action to action starting with the accusatory finger and finished with the ironing scene. Each action is rendered differently and absorbed into the background differently alluding to the heterogeneity of the same figure. There is a loss of gravity in the scene as well, disorienting the viewer. The left side of the canvas is the most resolved and successful in its use of different techniques to render the actions. Future projects will need to work on composition."