Above is the original charcoal sketch of Ruth Draper by Sargent that I used for my inspiration. Draper was an American actress and someone who Sargent admired; enough for him to draw her as one of her characters, free of charge. Below, I have my three interpretations that I created, where I depicted the few economic/social classes and common stereotypes associated with them. When I initially studied this piece of art, I was drawn in by the subject’s deep, solemn, and mysterious aura. She seems disconnected from the world around her, only lost and consumed by whatever is filling her mind. I felt that she has a story and history behind her that I was curious to find out about. This influenced my first recreation of the sketch- the poor woman living on the streets, going through her own struggle. From there I built upon that to show the differences in social classes and how extreme they can be.
First of all, I really like your editing style; it’s very professional. Even though you changed the background completely, they still feel very natural and if I didn’t know you edited this I would not have suspected anything.
I also think you explore a very important stereotype. Actresses are usually known for wearing designer clothes, which is depressing since they put so much work into their films and despite that, the interviewers only ever ask about what dress they’re wearing.
I think that each of your variations are unique, yet similar, and I enjoy the narrative between each of them. It’s as though each variation is the same face, but existing under different circumstances. And, to me, it portrays a story of context. Where, really, background is crucial in portrayal. Each variation tells a completely different story, gives a different feeling, yet the face is exactly the same. That message is quite interesting to me.
You’re editing is amazing. I’m really curious about how you made the last version of the piece. I really like how you did not change the original imagine too much, staying to it’s origins. That way it could still keep its original intended meaning
The way you did not change the face of the actress yet you were able to naturally incorporate her expression in three distinct classes is remarkable. I also expressed the different social and economic classes in my interpretation, and I think that is the case because pictographic mediums of art are more powerful than written mediums of art to convey the disparity. I do not know what it is about Sargents’ pieces that would lead to the interpretation of the diverse economic classes present in the country.
I am in awe on how well you edited and photoshopped the portrait. I think you seamlessly incorporated the main of focus of Sargent’s original portrait into different environments and seasons. My interpretation of your contemporary takes on Sargent’s portraits is that as the seasons change, the expression on the faces of the people don’t change, but the way the ‘clothing’ changes reflect the different economic classes in society. For example, the first portrait reflects the poor, with no color in the portrait. The second portrait reflects the middle class with some color and the background of a middle class housing neighborhood. Lastly, the third portrait is of the upper class with the excessive sunglasses and the background of a mall.