Self-portrait #2, done in the style of Amadeo Modigliani, one of my all-time favorite painter/sculptors.

Amadeo Modigliani (which is pronounced MOH-dee-lee-AHN-ee – the G is silent) had a very distinct style that has always appealed to me.

It was very simplified, and intensely stylized, yet he always somehow was able to get the personality of the sitter spot-on.

His nudes were absolutely outstanding. In a time when nude women were portrayed as plump, angelic and non-sexual, his were the most glorious, sensual – and yet not at all sexual – nudes.

Here is the painting I used as a jumping off point. You can see how much more yellow he used – I wanted mine to be suffused with rich reds. And of course, mine holds a paint brush, with paint on her fingers!

When I saw one of his paintings in a museum a long time ago, I was struck by how little paint he used. It was as if he was putting just a thin veneer of color over the dark surface.

I discovered later that it was because he was always broke, and thinned his paint as much as he could in order to make it last longer! That’s why you can see the dark undertones in the background of this painting.

ANGELA MODIGLIANI –
Original – acrylics on canvas, 20″ x 16″
Available