Pasty-faced enough? This is the finished painting to the sketch more fully described in 29 June's entry.
Though they are observers, it seems I channeled a kind of seedy, 1930s desperation into their faces. Perhaps their garb got me thinking of time loops, the present times echoing slightly the era of dispossession and economic hardship of that decade.
Note: Here in Norway we see men in black constantly, without even realizing it. The common crosswalk/pedestrian sign is iconic, the silhouetted figure cemented firm in the classic default hat and suit.
Hmmm, interesting...I have never really thought of our pedestrian crossing signs as "men in black", but you are right, they are! Wonder if anyone has ever found that offending to gender equality?
ReplyDeleteYes, it does seem a bit strange from the gender standpoint. Sometimes icons sacrifice sensitivity for clarity.
ReplyDeleteBut it is surprising that the pedestrian is not turned into a more abstract stick person with a circle head--like in "walk" signs in the US. Nonetheless, I do like the old Man in Black pedestrian, just because he is unusual and quirky, a holdover from an earlier time.