![]() ![]() I'm always worried about saying too much about the content of a painting because you don't want to lead people too much. I think part of it is just your instinct, usually a moment early on in the process, when it might not be sitting in front of you, but when you've gone out to lunch afterwards and they've finally dropped the performance or are being more relaxed themselves, or more confessional, and that's the point at which you might notice something they do or something that comes to you and then that leads you into a way of starting the picture. It can sometimes be a little paralyzing having too many options. Whatever it is I think that there are no rules for and… there are so many different ways into it. But I think also I'm interested in the other narratives that are communicated through a painting the composition, different areas of the painting are very highly finished and others may be looser or more raw, the geometry of the underpainting or the hard edges of the painterly brushstrokes. Partly their physical appearance and what they’re communicating nonverbally through their expression and the way they sat or stood and that kind of thing. JONATHAN YEO: I'm trying to tell as much of someone's story as possible and the truth about them in different ways. NEA: What are you setting out to do when you paint someone’s portrait? How do you define what a portrait is? Here’s Yeo on how he sees his work as a portrait painter, why he prefers to leave his work a little undone, and how he sometimes relies on others to let him know if a portrait is finished. As he noted when we spoke with him, “You form these interesting relationships, and sometimes it turns into therapy, you know? Sometimes you find out all kinds of things about them that you wouldn't have known.” While Yeo once described what he does as “unmasking pretense,” he also has painted portraits of actors as characters they have played, such as his portrait of Kevin Spacey as House of Cards' “Frank Underwood.” We spoke with the artist when he was in town to officially loan the Underwood portrait to the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery (where it will be on view through mid-October). For Jonathan Yeo-who’s painted a range of notable figures, including Malala Yousafszai, Kate Moss, Cara Delavigne and Tony Blair-the resulting relationship with the sitter is a treasured part of the process. The subject must bear it while the painter undresses them with his eyes-metaphorically, that is. The relationship between a portrait painter and his or her subject is an intimate one. They explain that it was intended to be "an ironic reflection upon his perceived position within today's art world".“I think that successful portraits are basically a document of the relationship between the artist and the sitter.” - Jonathan Yeo The two discussed how he should pose, before deciding on his confrontational stance and straight-to-easel glare. Damien, and his undeniable ongoing impact on the art world, is endlessly fascinating." People assume we have completely contrary positions – of tradition and modernity, painting and the physical – however, artists are always interested in other artists, and how and what they achieve in their work. ![]() Damien is probably best known for his avant-garde sculptures and I for my portraits. Yeo said the two artists found they had much in common: "Essentially it is a portrait by an artist of another artist known for doing completely different work. ![]() He said: "Like Turner strapping himself to the ship's mast in order to create a true likeness of a storm, Yeo time and time again achieves what should be impossible: creating a true picture, an image or a glimpse, of people we think we know and of those we've never met." ![]()
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