This is Enrique Peña Nieto, the president of Mexico
Or perhaps he turned out a bit heavier and older than his true self. Must be the stress of the job.
See the photo I looked at here
And the rest of my “Rulers of the World” series here
And on a side-note: Somebody pointed out to me yesterday, that none other than George W. Bush has done a series of world-leader portraits before me. I took a look at this article – and i couldn’t help but laugh.. I know, I know… My portraits are not any better than Bush’s but.. I didn’t use to be the president of USA… Oh well, I hope he’s having fun.
Yes Bush’s paintings are not bad. I saw the “art world” complaining that he used photos as references, but they don’t seem to mind all their pet favorite artists appropriating all kinds of things directly from other artists and photos, so I don’t see what the problem is.
And anyone trying to deal with the political and social situation in Mexico is going to have more than a few grey hairs from it…
Definitely. No, i didn’t get the thing about the reference photos either.. In architecture school the motto seems to be “steal steal steal!!!” – it’s really encouraged, because whatever you do will never be a copy – it’s always a new creation, and using the source material of great people can never make your end result worse. I can imagine that they say the same in art school. I do think that it’s a peculiar role to see him in, though.
From an interview I heard with a critic I think they disliked his use of photos because they were freely available press shots and the hope was that, with his privileged position of having actually worked closely with these leaders, Bush might have presented some sort of insider view or personal impression of them that he gained during his time as president. They were disappointed because anyone with access to the Internet could have painted these particular views.
that makes sense
The article I read was complaining that he didn’t paint them from life, morphing into a complaint about people using photos in general. I can actually see the validity of the argument you read.
yes, I completely disagree with any blanket statements claiming that using photos is wrong or somehow ‘cheating’
Yes Bush’s paintings are not bad. I saw the “art world” complaining that he used photos as references, but they don’t seem to mind all their pet favorite artists appropriating all kinds of things directly from other artists and photos, so I don’t see what the problem is.
And anyone trying to deal with the political and social situation in Mexico is going to have more than a few grey hairs from it…
Definitely. No, i didn’t get the thing about the reference photos either.. In architecture school the motto seems to be “steal steal steal!!!” – it’s really encouraged, because whatever you do will never be a copy – it’s always a new creation, and using the source material of great people can never make your end result worse. I can imagine that they say the same in art school. I do think that it’s a peculiar role to see him in, though.
From an interview I heard with a critic I think they disliked his use of photos because they were freely available press shots and the hope was that, with his privileged position of having actually worked closely with these leaders, Bush might have presented some sort of insider view or personal impression of them that he gained during his time as president. They were disappointed because anyone with access to the Internet could have painted these particular views.
that makes sense
The article I read was complaining that he didn’t paint them from life, morphing into a complaint about people using photos in general. I can actually see the validity of the argument you read.
yes, I completely disagree with any blanket statements claiming that using photos is wrong or somehow ‘cheating’
I don’t see anything wrong with drawing from photos or the artwork of others either. Obviously drawing from life is ideal but it’s not always possible. People get snooty about the strangest things.
I had forgotten about Bush and his world leader portraits. I’m glad he’s keeping busy in his semi-retirement. George W Bush: better painter than he was president? Discuss.
I don’t see anything wrong with drawing from photos or the artwork of others either. Obviously drawing from life is ideal but it’s not always possible. People get snooty about the strangest things.
I had forgotten about Bush and his world leader portraits. I’m glad he’s keeping busy in his semi-retirement. George W Bush: better painter than he was president? Discuss.