Robert Simon Distinctively Visual

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Robert Simon, a piece by George Thigpen, is a black and white collage portrait of Reston Virginia’s founder, Robert E. Simon. This particular piece of art is a mixed media portrait, utilizing multiple art medias. A work of art that is considered mixed media is one where the artist utilizes multiple medias in a single piece. For example, if one were to paint an image using both oil and acrylic paint, then the work would be considered mixed media. In Robert Simon, George Thigpen used both pencil and thousands of pieces of paper to recreate the portrait. He first made a pencil reproduction of a photo of Robert E. Simon, then, cut thousands of individuals pieces of paper and arranged them perfectly to create the portrait. Robert Simon utilizes the color white and the color black, giving the white figure a …show more content…

White is especially arduous in this regard because, in the case of painting, it is usually the same color as the canvas. The primary media used in this piece is white paper, which on its own, when combined to form an image would make for a figure that is difficult to see. To offset this issue, Thigpen also utilizes the color black, and in doing so, the face is given features, such as facial lines, thick eyebrows, a goatee, as well as shadowing on the right cheek. In a portrait, it is essential that the viewer’s eyes are dragged to the subject of the piece, the individual portrayed, and therefore, it is crucial that the figure is viewable as well as clearly defined within the piece. At the same time, in the case of this piece, one is immediately drawn to the texture. When observing a regular portrait made from paints, it is easy to visualize the surface of the piece as smooth and flat. In Robert Simon, one can not help but assume that the surface is rugged and somewhat layered due to the many pieces of shredded

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