Brunette with Pearl Earrings and Yellow Tied Scarf 

Rolf Armstrong made this portrait of a woman, sometime in the mid-20th century, using pastels. Not unlike cosmetics, pastels, with their powdery texture, offer the potential for blending and softening edges, which Armstrong exploits to the full. Think about how this work was likely made. Armstrong would have carefully built up layers of pigment, paying close attention to the fall of light on the woman's face. This isn't just painting, it's also artful rendering, and is very close to the techniques used in commercial illustration of the era. That's where the cultural significance really lies. Armstrong made his living producing idealized images of women for magazines and advertising. This portrait, with its emphasis on beauty and glamour, reflects the values of a society increasingly driven by consumption and mass media. The artwork blurs the lines between art and craft, inviting us to consider the social and economic forces that shape our perceptions of beauty and worth.