Self Portrait
This series of two self portraits was created in the late spring of 2022. When the last cold breaths of winter were finally being replaced with warmth and sunshine and the final semester of Bengel’s first year at The New School was closing, these works were born. The two portraits were created in an hour and a half each and modeled after the stylistic choices of the Welsh artist Gwen John.
Digital Portrait
Created in Procreate while lounging on her couch, Bengel painted this digital self portrait. Small brushstrokes form together to build a painterly fashion. As with most of Bengel’s portraits, the subject’s gaze does not hesitate to unabashedly and honestly address the viewer. There is an intimate comfortability held in the eyes of the subject, almost as if looking into the eyes of an intimate partner, or perhaps right into the eyes of the self.
Physical Portrait
The second portrait birthed in this project was painted immediately after the first. In the dismissal of a reference photo, Bengel painted herself while looking directly into a mirror for an hour and a half. She combines glazing portraiture techniques found in oil portraits with the medium of acrylic paint. This is achieved by diluting the acrylic paint with water and layering washes of the thinned paint. Bold and sweeping brushstrokes portray the subject in a short amount of time and are balanced with small moments of precise detail. This can be found in the areas Bengel finds the most importance for conveying emotion, mood, and personality to the viewer, which are in the eyes, mouth, nose, and often hair. Once again, Bengel holds the gaze of the viewer gently and truthfully in the eyes of the subject.
Here one can see the stylistic inspiration Bengel derived from the artist Gwen John. This is most notable in the subject’s eye shape, portrayal, and gaze. John’s style is also mimicked in the choice of high saturation of skin tone in areas such as cheeks, eyelids, and ears. Bengel relates personally to John in the regard to primarily portray female subjects, a painterly style filled with moody color palettes and subjects addressing the viewer. Bengel also finds commonality with John’s personal life that rejected many pre-subscribed expectations and rules for women and women artists.