Today I will be focusing on comparing two similar artists: Holly Mae Pandergast and Jeffrey Hale from our own Iao stable of artists. What is interesting is the similarities in their signature element which is influenced most heavily by Modigliani and his use of elongated figures and stretched necks in figurative work.

However, the mood is different. Ms. Pandergast uses a rather pastel and muted array of tones within her painting example above whereas Mr. Hale uses a strongly bright set of colors instead. There is a more decorative background in Hale's work which adds an oriental element to the figure and complements whereas the "lack" of background in Pandergast's figure work tends to allow the viewer to focus more of the painful grimace of the model and the facial expression.

Hale's Katya with her indifferent look and her crossed arms suggests that the model does not want to communicate with the viewer directly. The expression is "borrowed" from a more commercial vein such as a Guess ad. Pandergast's model has a more religious expression, that of suffering and painful ecstacy. One could argue that her view of the figure is more profound but honestly, I tend towards the stylized and more commercial and subtly postmodern so Hale's painting has a certain appeal which makes me feel like I'm involved rather than the traditional pieta-like motif which has overtones throughout Western history.

Round one: Hale I believe? Time to let the reader decide...