Painting Portfolio Critique

This video is a critique of a figurative painting & still life portfolio by Crystal Tranquilino, providing a detailed critique of the overall portfolio, followed by critiques for each individual artwork.

Aspects of the entire portfolio and artworks are identified, and recommendations for concrete strategies for how to make progress are made.

Critique led by Art Prof Clara Lieu and Teaching Artist Alex Rowe.

“I am a full-time figurative oil painter exhibiting with a few galleries in Manila, Philippines. I started oil painting in 2016, and my art focuses on painting the human body as well as still-life drenched in all kinds of liquids with varying viscosities.

One of the most important parts of my process is that moment in the photoshoot phase where I pour the liquid over the muse.

I treat it as a brief moment of letting go: as an artist who struggles with perfectionism and wanting to control every aspect of my work, that moment is an exception and I let gravity and other factors dictate what the drips would look like.

My comfort zone is painting realistic representational art. I can make a paint-dripped flower look like a photograph of a paint-dripped flower with smooth brushstrokes and accurate colors. Straying away from my comfort zone and into the art I want to be creating is easier said than done.

Especially because my collectors have come to know me as someone who can paint realistic paintings. The fear of ruining that has stopped me from exploring and experimenting with other styles.”

Crystal Tranquilino