In January 2016 I visited London and the Jean-Etienne Liotard exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts. Swiss artist Jean-Etienne Liotard (1702-1789) was among the most innovative and technically impressive artist of the eighteenth century. He was a master of pastel, working primarily as a portraitist. The following text is written by William Hauptman in the exhibition catalogue:
"Louisa Anne was in poor health all her life, and shortly after her nineteenth birthday she died of tuberculosis. In the portrait we see her at the age of 6, wide-eyed and with her lips slightly parted as she poses attentively for the painter. Liotard accented Louisa Anne´s youth and frailty by placing her in an oversized chair, as the high position of the armrest indicates. To add to the sense of vulnerability, the Princess is wearing a dess that is clearly too large for her: it slips outward at the bodice to reveal her right nipple, a startling and perhaps provocative detail hardly associated with royal portraits, but evidence of Liotard´s faithful observation."
The portraits displayed at the exhibition were exquisite, Liotard was a pastel wizard, all his paintings were delicate and vibrant! I don´t compare myself in any way with this masterful artist but I came to think of the portrait of Louisa Anne today when I was working on a portrait of another six-year-old child Tuva. It´s a work in progress, I need to change some things and emphasize some things.
Tuva, 2017, pastel on brown paper (work in progress). Artist: Erica Stenkrona
Tuva, 6 years old, screen shot from a short video clip (courtesy of SVT News).
This cute girl has a severe brain damage which means she needs assistance all the time. Today I planned to make a christmasy painting to accompany a digital holiday greeting to all my friends and family. My first attempt to make an innovative tomtenisse (christmas elf) last week failed. My second attempt did not even materialize because when I saw the video clip of Tuva I decided to paint her. I love her expression and tender charisma. Making art nowadays, I´m always torn between the inclination to do a realistic painting, which is a meticulous and timeconsuming project, or to just let go of all the rules and goof around with color, shape and form.
This picture I messed up!! I do that a lot of the time.
The model, Folke, is a perfectly adorable tomtenisse!