portrait by Mugi626

Hey guys, hope you’re doing well. Apologies for the long break in content, but I’m back with an exciting one to break the silence. This is an unnamed portrait drawing of a vampire by Mugi626. Mugi has a way with conveying subtle expressions that resonates throughout their diverse portfolio, and has made me really enjoy their work.

This piece stands out to me among Mugi’s work as an excellent showcasing of their portrait style- a powerful exercise in displaying raw emotions. This drawing strikes a delicate balance between suggestive and innocent, giving it a kind of provocative feel. In a weird way, I think this is exactly the sort of complex feeling that we tend to associate with vampires, although it is perhaps a hyperbolic metaphor for a more ordinary interaction. The character’s expression lies in a purgatory between hungry and curious, predatory and innocent, unaffectionate and yet somehow personal. It’s not quite the look of a hunter to its prey, but also not exactly romantic affection. The subtle expression lives somewhere in the gray, touching more obvious states of desire, without explicitly putting itself in any box.

On another note, while this piece is not the preeminent example, Mugi frequently uses a very watery painting technique. I’ve talked about lineprint in some of my other posts, but here the line is more to support the brushwork rather than at the forefront of the piece. The flow-y silhouette, is given varied emphasis and form with color and value. This style blurs the line between the linework and brushwork in a beautiful way. As with any art, the outline is very important, but here I think it reaffirms the essential volumes without feeling like “a sketch with color.”

Additionally, I wanna use this an opportunity to highlight the importance of point of view. Virtually anyone will helplessly feel the affect of “point of view” but this is a great example to understand what it does. Instead of a straight-on angle suggesting a more equal relationship between the model and viewer, the character here is put in a position to give the impression of superiority but not quite intimidation. The angle comes off as a little bit exaggerated, and Mugi utilizes this to their advantage. The POV enhances the power of the already refined mix of emotions we get from the expression, and makes the impact that much stronger.

One of the lessons that Mugi’s work affirms, is that creating a powerful effect on the viewer comes from rigging the emotional switches in your favor, and then building the piece around that. Don’t just use techniques without taking advantage of the principles of positioning and concept that should be built into composition. Typically when I feel my work falls flat it’s because I didn’t create a dynamic enough perspective or pose to grab the viewer by the throat. Moral of the story, if you wanna learn how to move people with art, go give Mugi626 a follow.