The Power Of A Woman's Beauty

There are those for whom looking into the face of a beautiful woman is a profound experience.  What exactly is meant by "profound" is, of course, dependent on the individual.  You know, "eye of the beholder" and all.  For some it's kind of a "love-at-first-sight" syndrome.  It can get pretty weird too.  I know this doesn't happen with everyone, but, there are those for whom it's kind of a matter of ideals.  And the biggest problem with it is that the "ideal" is something that exists pretty much exclusively in the mind of the beholder.  Much the same way guys have their own standard of what is or isn't beautiful, there are some guys that have attached a personality or a character to that beauty.  It's at this point that the problems start. 

Some social dysfunctionals have a hard time separating the "ideal" from the reality when it comes to encounters with women.  They see a beautiful woman and are enchanted by what they see.  But, the thing is, it's not just about what they see.  The characteristics that they've attached to the beauty they see they project on to the person.  They, rather quickly, come to expect to see those characteristics associated with the woman's beauty in the woman herself.  When they look at her, they don't see her, they see the person they've projected on to her.  If and/or when they don't see the person they've projected on to her in her behavior, there are generally two things that happen.  Their infatuation with the woman, which has its basis in what they've projected on to her, blinds them to who she really is and they interact with her on the basis of their projection, or, he becomes frustrated or incensed by her failure to live up to the characteristics of who he expects her to be.  I realize that these are extreme generalizations.  But this is the way I've seen it in some of the guys I've known to be like this. 

Besides, I used to be one of these guys. 

I don't really consider myself much of an artist.  But, my ability to render the beauty of women has provided me with an opportunity to enjoy it on a bit more of an intimate basis than one who can only behold it.  I'm nobody's painter and my ability to perceive color is flawed, but, what skill I do have with a pencil has afforded me a stimulating experience in exploring that beauty.  While I am no longer afflicted with this psychosis of my younger days, I still find gazing into the face of a beautiful woman very soothing.  And with the right tools, I can enjoy the exploration of every detail of that beauty.  Everything from the tones and shades of her complexion to the highlights of every visible strand of her hair.      

The Intimacy Of Drawing

I've listened to a lot of people talk about drawing. Some are what I might call mechanical in their references. Outlines are discussed, the structure and the "topography"of the subject are measured and considered, and, in many cases, all that follows are quick, jagged, strokes that portray marked, measured and considered areas of light and dark brought together to form a recognizable image. Now, I understand that this isn't always the case, but, more often than not, it is. From what I've seen, most drawings of this kind are just a stepping stone to something else. Usually, they serve as guides and references for paintings or sculptures. The principle painting or sculpture is where any intimacy experienced by the artist is usually found. Or, at least, this is what's generally told.

Proceeding beyond the stage of outline in drawing can provide an artist with as great a sense of intimacy with the subject as work in any other medium. (And, it's not necessarily dependent on the extent of the artists abilities.) Intimacy between artist and subject, being the subjective experience that it is, is not something for which I care to try and set some kind of standard. It's always been different things to different people. For myself, I find that amount of detail in a drawing can have a dramatic affect on the level of intimacy an artist can experience.

Using a portrait as an example, beginning with the outline, the pursuit of realism to the full extent of the artist's abilities, brings the artist's focus to bear on the lines and curves of the face, neck, and (if the portrait includes as much) the shoulders. The shape and position of the features of the face and head, the way the line of the hair tops the forehead and frames the face, the curve of the cheek and jaw line all show the success or failure in capturing the image of the subject. The pursuit of success in capturing the subject inevitably draws the artist into a deep and thorough exploration of the features of the subject. Now, beyond the stage of outline, the artist explores the contours of the subject with shading. Here, the greater the amount of detail sought, the tighter the focus required. The closer to real the artist tries to come, the more the artist must see. The more the artist sees, the more the artist must account for. Experience provides standard techniques that make the artist more and more familiar with the subtle shades that betray the curves and contours that occur inside the silhouette and have no outline of their own. From the lessons of experience, substance is best shown with a tone (preferably, the lightest one visible) across the whole of any area of like texture (i. e. the skin). In drawing, the application of darker shades becomes smoother when applied to an area already shaded lighter. Gradating shades from lightest tone to dark, rather than from white space to dark, better provides the illusion of substance. Again, applying these tones draws the artist into a deep and thorough exploration of the features of the subject. Strokes in the shades and highlights of the hair in the direction of its flow can provide the illusion of individual strands and a wonderful sense of texture. Experience has shown that the techniques which best facilitate this also call for deep, thorough exploration.

The deep and thorough exploration of the subject is by definition the intimacy of which I spoke earlier. And, if not, then it is the source of it. Now, for myself (and some others, considering what I've heard from them), this is the source of an emotional attachment that develops between and the artist and their work. The few teachers that I've studied under warned of the difficulties of this kind of attachment and counseled against allowing one's self to become so attached to one's work. This is especially prudent if the motivation for doing the work is largely or mostly commercial. But, I submit that, for some (myself included), this "intimacy"is, at the very least, a serious motivator for being an artist in the first place. So, while it may be prudent to rein in one's emotional involvement where commercial transactions are concerned, an artist should be allowed to enjoy the intimacy of their work, in whatever form it is experienced, if for no other reason than the motivation to remain an artist.