Hermana I

Barbara Stammel's work is characterized by large-format portraits, represented up to the shoulders and on a white background, as if it were a passport photograph that gives no clue as to the identity of the person portrayed.

In the work Hermana I, the artist paints directly on the canvas without a previous drawing or sketch; he applies the paint with large, quick brushstrokes, but he also uses his fingers, like a brush, to achieve all the expressiveness he seeks in his faces.

One of the things that most catches our attention in this work is its gaze. He looks us straight in the eye, as if to study or interrogate us while arching an eyebrow slightly. His gaze becomes even more enigmatic if we carefully observe the color of his eyes. In one we appreciate the color blue, but in the other we see gray. The answer to the reason for this color can be found by looking at the face as a whole, since the artist wanted to represent the effect that light has on it, from

left side

Among the colors he has used for the face, we find different shades of blue, gray and even red, which are more vivid and clear in that part where the light hits directly, while the other part is slightly darkened , and highlights the shadow that is projected on the side of the nose and neck.

The vibration effect, the coldness of the colors, the serious expression and the questioning look make this figure become another spectator in the room who watches us as we enter; it tries to discover some aspect about our identity, just as we do when we observe it.

The way he has done the hair, layering brown, yellow and black brushstrokes, together with the splashes of paint around it, gives the face a certain movement or vibration that is reinforced by the large brushstrokes.