Fitzpatrick Deconstructed

13 in x 21 in (each, x6),

8/2024

Human skin tone can be described on a relative scale, first proposed by Thomas Fitzpatrick, a dermatologist in 1975. The very lightest complexions can be grouped into “Fitzpatrick type I”, the very darkest complexions into “Fitzpatrick type VI”, and everthing else lies somewhere in between. I had the idea of doing a sextet of canvases, each with the exact same pattern laid down, and coordinating colors between canvases. To do this, I took one shade of brown, for example, and kept adding either a light color like titanium white or a dark color like Payn'e’s gray, and then used the same base color across canvases to fill in the pattern in the same order. Having related colors repeated across canvases (but in darker or lighter hues) also helps unify the piece. I chose to add bright silver in a textured application to unify the group, again matching the pattern across canvases. I thought the bright silver looked good across the entire Fitzpatrick spectrum so that each Fitzpatrick canvas would look beautiful on its own.