What to Look for When Selecting a Portrait

With Lost Art Salon’s Vintage Portraits and Figures Event around the corner, it is only right to provide you with a simple guide to analyzing and selecting a portrait for your space. Picture this: You’re walking into the Salon, ready to hunt for your perfect piece, but you’ve been struck with this sudden feeling of being watched… you begin to look around the walls of the Salon and realize the great presence of portraits looking back at you. You feel drawn to one portrait in particular but you can’t quite figure out why. This is a good sign… you already know more than you think. You don't need to be an art historian to understand what to look for when selecting a portrait; you simply need to know the following four elements often used in portraiture to tell a story.

The Eyes

Fig. 1

The first and most obvious place to look in a portrait are the eyes. It is the most compelling part of a portrait and often determines the immediate feelings evoked. Take a moment to notice where the eyes are gazing. Maybe they are looking off to the side, at an object, or straight at the viewer. While a direct gaze can feel intimate, it can also be confrontational, making it feel like the subject is aware of your presence. How does it make you feel? 

Let’s take a look at this portrait by Paul McCoy (fig.1). This side profile of a woman looking away from the viewer is a great example of a portrait in which there is distance between the subject and the viewer. The subject is not making eye contact, they are looking away. With their arched eyebrow and upward tilt of the head, they are distant, and there is no demand for attention. In fact, from the viewer's perspective, it is as if we are witnessing a moment of contemplation.

The Hands

Fig. 2

Another place to look at in a portrait are the hands. Interestingly enough, historically, hand gestures are often more revealing than facial expressions alone. Pay attention to the positioning of the hands. Where are they resting? Are they relaxed or holding tension? A soft, open hand with the palm facing up could suggest the subject is calm and at ease, while a controlled, closed hand could indicate the subject is focused or in a moment of tension. 

Let’s take a closer look at this oil painting ‘Girl at the Table’ by Jack Bevier (fig.2). You’ll see one hand is in a soft fist supporting the subject's head while the other hand rests gently on the table. One hand being closed and supportive, while the other is open and grounded, in addition to the slightly detached gaze, could suggest this woman may be paused in a moment of reflection.

Clothing, Objects, & Setting

Fig. 3

Next, observe what the subject is wearing and what surrounds them. Clothing and objects are closely tied to identity. They offer subtle clues about lifestyle, class, and self-identity. Jewelry and fabrics can suggest something about the person's day-to-day life or relationships. A book can hint at the subject's state of mind or perspective of the world. These kinds of elements are rarely accidental and usually help place the figure within a broader story. 

As you can see in this portrait by Virginia Conroy (fig.3), the clothing style is bold and theatrical. There are strong color contrasts and exaggerated shapes. The tilted hat obscures a portion of the figure's face, adding a feeling of mystery, as if she is in control of what you see. What is most striking about this piece is the object in the figure's hand: a book. The vibrant clothing and setting versus the simplicity of the book, without cover art or a title, creates an interesting dichotomy where the figure feels both outwardly constructed and inwardly focused. In addition to the other hand framing the face and the downward gaze, this is a piece that demonstrates a strong sense of self-identity where theatrics meet intimacy.

Lighting

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Fig. 4

The fourth key feature of a portrait to notice is the lighting. Soft, diffused light can be warm and inviting, while higher contrasts and strong shadows can feel more dramatic, distant, or intense. The lighting of a portrait directly impacts how we perceive the subject and the presence it creates in a space. 

Look at this self portrait by John Nicolini (fig.4). The lighting in this piece creates an enticing contrast between warm and inviting versus guarded and mysterious. The light appears to be coming from above and slightly to the right, creating an effect on the face of the figure where one cheek is illuminated and the shadow from the hat has just enough presence to slightly obscure the eyes. In this portrait, the lighting, used as a tool to reveal and conceal, creates a subtle sense of distance where the subject is front and center but is not fully accessible.

Selecting a Portrait

Now that you know four key elements of what to look for in selecting a portrait, the final step is to find the piece that draws you in. Do you gravitate toward quiet introspection or expressive drama? You may notice certain portraits hold your attention longer than others, trusting this instinct is an important part of the decision making process and should not be ignored.

Part of what makes portraiture especially rewarding at Lost Art Salon is that many of these works come with stories beyond the canvas. Over the years, through conversations with family members, fellow artists, personal writings, books, and archival research, we’ve come to know many of these artists in deeply human ways. Sometimes those stories even lead us to the people who sat for the portraits, the relationships behind them, or the moments that inspired them.

Picture this: you’re walking through the salon again, but this time something feels different. You begin to spot where the eyes are directed, how the hands are positioned, the details that surround the figure, and how the light shapes the overall feeling. Learning how to look at a portrait simply gives you a better understanding of what you are noticing. The more you notice, the more clearly you begin to see what stays with you. At Lost Art Salon, our wide collection of portraiture offers a way to bring presence and depth into a space. More often than not, the pieces you return to are the ones that belong to you.