10 ways to declare vanity is a painting that demonstrates exactly what it declares - vanity in ten different forms. From the painting, vanity can be seen in terms of:
1. The materials being utilised for the painting (cosmetics and nail polish)
2. Using (a highly modified version of) myself as the model.
3. The use of a mirror, which is often viewed as a symbol of vanity.
4. Using my handphone to capture an image of myself in front of the mirror (something many people tend to do these days).
5. Painting on a glamorous hairstyle on myself.
6. Painting myself to appear as though I have a smaller waist.
7. Using colours that are fairer than my actual skintone (because where I come from, fair skin is considered beautiful).
8. Making my eyes in this painting appear larger than their actual size in real life, by drawing them larger and attaching false lashes (because large eyes are what I perceive to be beautiful).
9. Painting the background as though I am in front of a dressing table with expensive-looking furniture in the background.
10. Painting a 'halo' around my head as though I am a bright, angelic beauty.
I learned how to mix cosmetic pigments via experimentation and from my previous 'Anticipation: All Made Up' piece. Liquid cosmetics can be applied directly onto canvas, whereas powder-form pigments need to be mixed with baby oil to get an even and usable colour.
Initial sketches
Using pre-loved foundation primer as a base for the cosmetic pigments
Setting foundation and highlighter on top of the primer
A sample of SariAyu foundation and a bottle of seldom-used blending colour from TheFaceShop.
Layering on eye shadows and blush and making use of liquid eyeliner.
Colouring the background with lipstick...
...As well as nail polish...
After 6 hours of painting - iThis is what the painting looked like for about six months until I decided that the flat, textureless red background had to go.
