Blue Green

reference_for_header_BG_painting_Giselle-cropped

Oil on Canvas

18 x 24 inches

Completed in 2024

Portrait Created at 16 Years Old

Blue Green

Multiple Truths At Once

In this single portrait, Giselle uses eye color to capture her mother shifting through different moments of time. Her mother’s eyes tend to shift between blue & green depending on the light. To preserve that change, Giselle painted one eye slightly more blue, and the other, more green. Although the change is subtle, they both represent her mother. Giselle couldn’t choose one over the other, so she included both. In this way, Giselle captures multiple truths at once. Giselle has taken a fixed moment and transformed it into various moments combined.

The Shift In Eye Color Is More Than Capturing The Physical Appearance; It’s About Capturing The Many Versions Of A Cherished Person

One may observe the symbolism of perception & fluidity through the representation of shifting of eye color. Her mother is more than a best friend, role model, & loving parent; she changes how Giselle perceives the world and shows her all the possibilities to be explored. Blue Green is a study of relationship, as much as portraiture.

The shifting colors go beyond what her mother looks like; they represent how her mother changes her perception of the world. Giselle sought to capture not just one image, but several truths held within the same person.

In Giselle’s Words

Painting the Way I See Her

My mother’s eyes can appear blue or green depending on the light, so I painted one eye slightly more blue and the other slightly more green. I didn’t want this to be very noticeable; but the change in color was very important to me. It represents my mom at various moments in time, and I love all the versions of her. I just wanted to be able to capture them at once.

— Giselle V. Brown

giselle v brown and jolie brown finished painting

The Luminous Color Palette Allows The Portrait To Reflect An Emotional Presence

Giselle’s approach is very sophisticated; she’s not only painting people differently, she’s painting relationships differently. The work marked a deliberate choice to move beyond charcoal-her preferred medium, & portray her mother in color. That decision carries it’s own meaning. Giselle wanted to see her mom represented in color because she makes Giselle’s world brighter and more colorful.

Giselle painted this portrait to reflect her relationship with her mother. Her love for her mother is clearly observed in this luminously painted portrait; capturing an inner light that only a child can see within their mother. She is radiant in her child’s eyes.