 |
| 16" x 40" acrylic painting on wrapped canvas by Rebecca Nebesar |
As a retirement gift to my Czech-American husband I chose to paint a self-portrait in the style of
Alphonse Mucha
(pronounced "MOO-ka")
one of his favorite artists, a Czech who worked in France, the USA, and Czechoslovakia. He made a name for himself in commercial art; his Sarah Bernhardt posters are well-known. His work is pretty much the definition of Art Nouveau. In this five minute video you can watch how the final painting took shape. Starting with reference images and studying Mucha's particular aesthetic, over time I was able to really connect with his style and as I painted to truly appreciate his skill in composition, his underlying use of geometry, the agility of his flowing interrelated lines,
and his artistic dexterity and finesse in every detail.
Link to Rick Steve's 3-minute spot on Mucha:
