POOR BOY

This painting and essay was done on MAY 21st, 2008 for my intro to 2D foundtion

Painting people is though for me to accomplish. Many of my paintings consist of animals and nature. In contrast to this piece titled “Poor Boy”. I wanted to give an urban feel to the painting and human reality.
The painting process and creating volume was challenging for me to execute. I have not been taught how to paint bodies or faces. In order to accomplish skin tone, the use of mixing colors with white to create different hues was new to me. Layering paint was the main technique I used. Layer after layer of paint, brings out the vibrant colors of acrylics. Using white was important for the highlights of the skin in order to give it depth and a three dimensional effect. I used no black in the painting except for the wall background. To accomplish what looks black are, dark shades of brown. What brings out the urban street life is the gray and white used as a wall in the background.
The painting as a whole represents the poor child. In a sense this poor child has double meaning. Although this child lives on the meager streets of any city of Latin America, he is smiling. What does it really mean to be poor and homeless? The child alone on the floor is enjoying a moment in life. The contradiction viewed in the painting is whether or not money and social class define a person. Homeless children can live out their lives happy. I portrayed this image because living in El Salvador I would see countless poor children in the streets but what I found interesting is their happiness towards life. Children bring about joy and high spirits upon the world. To witness such an event lets me know that humans do not need money in order to have happiness. Growing up in the United States I am conditioned to think money equals happiness. Although this child may look poor, I pose the question, is he poor by spirit? I am trying to break away from the standards and stereotypes I see and paint the reality that I observe through my life experiences.