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‘Representational Painting and What it Means to Me’ is the topic I talk about in my November 1, 2016 newsletter. If you would like to see more images of my work, that I have done over the years that may have been influenced by a few styles please subscribe to my free newsletter that I send on the first of each month. If you would like to subscribe please click www.sarkisantikajian.com.

What is representational painting? Basically it means achieving a semblance of the subject, the extent of which depends on the artist’s sensibility. It may be a photorealistic, abstracted, or loosely interpreted representation.

Some representational artists choose a certain style of painting early on and stay with it throughout their artistic careers. Others, like me, who are fascinated by the many ingenious ways the elusive activity of painting and drawing have been done, spanning thousands of years from cave paintings to modern day masterpieces, are lured at one time or another to experience the beauty derived from delving into a few varied styles, even if it turns out to be in passing. 

I, also, understand that ultimately artists thrive doing what comes naturally and suits their personalities. And what comes natural for one artist may turn out to be extremely difficult for another.

In my case the experience derived from experimenting in a few of the styles that fascinated me has been worthwhile. And, I believe, a conglomeration of these varied styles somehow seeped into what I do naturally today. 

Photorealism is a major player in representational painting. Defined by the American Heritage Dictionary as, a style of painting that resembles photography in its meticulous attention to realistic detail, it has a profound presence in representational art, is admired by the vast majority, and receives high acclaim in many juried shows, but representational painting to me has its appeal only when a personal interpretation of the subject, rather than a detailed copy, is achieved.

Personal representation of a subject in a painting, on the other hand, has varied connotations for artists. The artist may achieve this by using invented color harmony that is more desirable than what is in the subject, introducing elements that do not exist in the subject but retain the intrinsic color, reducing the subject to geometric patterns, or drawing inspiration from the subject while opting for a new pattern and color harmony that have little correlation to the subject.

The hardest thing to do when the artist interprets rather than copies a subject, is to retain its character, while at the same time portray a fresh and exciting personal expression. It invites a certain exaggeration in color and form while at the same time defines the character of the subject. This is not easy to accomplish for any of us, beginners as well as advanced, and it’s not always achievable, for we are attuned to the obvious and have difficulty veering from what we are accustomed to and comfortable with.