Working the Lounge by Jack Vettriano

Capturing the instantaneity of an intimate gesture in the muted setting of a bar or cabaret, this close-framed portrait highlights female glamour. Entitled “Working the Lounge”, this remarkable painting by Jack Vettriano captures a woman touching up her lipstick. The artist uses sconce lighting to create a climate of mysterious seduction and anticipation.

The young woman depicted in bust length holds a lipstick tube in her right hand and a compact powder mirror in her left hand. She wears a bright red evening halter dress highlighting the delicate contours of her shoulders and neck. Her brown hair is styled in a very chic high bun with fine strands escaping. In the background, bowl-shaped wall lamps project a cone of yellow light onto vertical burgundy partitions. In the lower right corner, the silhouette of a man in a dark suit seated at a table can be discerned.

The virtuosity of Jack Vettriano shines in controlling grazing light and the velvety rendering of skin tones. His mastery of oil painting gives this contemporary scene a captivating glow and irreproachable aesthetic quality.