The painting of the lady dressed in red and black below is a portrait of myself in the nutcracker. I chose to incorporate this art into my portfolio because it is something that puts me in a state of relaxation, focus, and meditation; otherwise known as the "zone". Each pice below is either a painting of my friends and I, or a posed portrait of someone I created. For my main piece I used a 11x14 inch canvas and acrylic paints. I took inspiration and lessons from my master artist : Edgar Degas; a master dancer artist, and my current artist: Alexandrea Djokic; who has a much more contemporary style. I first had trouble sketching out my subject because I couldn't quite get the proportions correct. Eventually I was satisfied and I moved onto the process of selecting colors which was specifically hard for the back drop because it is a painting in itself. Once I had gotten my sketch drawn and colors ready I began to paint from the back to the front focusing on depth since that is something I largely struggle with. I also had never painted skin tones until now so this was a learning experience, especially with the shadows and color mixing. Overall this piece represents something that brings me peace, I can identify with and share with others.