Description
The Bitter Profile of Pride, confronts the viewer with the raw emotional complexity of the human spirit. This 61 x 72 cm oil painting on Masonite depicts a striking female figure in profile, her gaze turned sharply to the side, locked in a moment of bitter reflection. Her porcelain white skin contrasts starkly with her dark hair and the richly painted shadows that contour her face.
This is a woman both proud and wounded. Her eyes, heavy with dramatic makeup and shaded in deep, moody tones, are fixed somewhere beyond the frame. Her expression tells a thousand stories: of injustice, disappointment, resilience. Her lips, painted in an ethereal blue, hint at silence held too long, or words never spoken.
Behind her, the red to deep pink background intensifies the emotional charge of the piece. In colour theory, red symbolises passion, strength, and sometimes anger, while pink tempers these feelings with layers of love, compassion, and sensitivity. The gradient between these tones evokes an emotional spectrum, perhaps echoing the tension between pride and vulnerability in the figure’s expression.
Blue, seen in both her lips and eyes, brings an emotional counterbalance. In stark contrast to the background, it symbolises sadness, depth, and introspection. The viewer is left suspended between fire and ice, between the burning truth of her stare and the chilling silence she holds within.
Painted on Masonite, a surface known for its density and ability to hold detail, this work retains the brushwork and layering that give her skin and eyes such resonance. Though the bottom corners show minor damage, it only adds to the narrative: imperfection, after all, is human. And this is a deeply human portrait.
The Bitter Profile of Pride, challenges its audience, it asks us to reflect on pride not as arrogance, but as a form of survival. This is a woman standing in her truth, even if that truth is painful. Whether viewed as a personal portrait or a symbolic piece, it offers layers of interpretation and emotional gravity.
Artist: Jeanette Pretorius
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