How to find a leading, authentic, silhouette artist

Great silhouette examples from the works of leading silhouette artist Cindi Harwood Rose

If you are wondering how to find a great silhouette artist, there are many ways.  The best is to research on the internet and compare the works.  Make sure they did not tell you that placing paper on a wall and tracing a shadow is an authentic silhouette!  The silhouette art, once called a "shade" was done before the camera and overhead projecter existed.  Here is a quick, quirky history:

Only the very wealthy could afford their likeness to be painted or drawn by a great artist, as seen in the museums.  In most cases, the subject may have been "spoiled" and living an idle life.  This was great for the artist!  The artist had to spend hours, days, weeks with the person drawing and painting them.  Often, they were a resident of the estate, while doing the elaborate, and detailed painting. Many times the subject would fall "in love" with the artist, as seen in the movie, "The Girl with the Pearl."  Or vise-versa.   Sometimes, the artist was bored, to be honest, having to paint someone (the same person) for months.  Around 500 years ago very crude scissors were invented, and an artist roughly cut the first profile from paper.  The exact moment this happened varies as to whose history of silhouette art you are reading.  Soon (but we are talking late 1700's and early 1800's) it was discovered that the artist could earn the same amount of money (or more) and meet more people, have more fun traveling cutting silhouettes!  They could do paper profile cuttings of a family at a time with all the relatives and friends included.  They did this by looking if they were talented.  If they were less talented, they made a quick sketch then, cut that out.  The reason that is not as great for a likeness is that, it means they lost some of the real details in translation.  I am now ending my rambling history, as you can go to SilhouettesbyCindi.com and get the exact, real history!

To find your super, fabulous, detailed, noted, high-quality silhouette artist, make sure they say they cut directly from the paper.  Hopefully they use real silhouette paper which is white on one side and black on the other.  This allows for more details as it is very thin paper!  Make sure they can do the fancy silhouettes of groups, not just single silhouettes one by one pasted down on a sheet.  Note on my examples the doubles and triples cut from one paper.  That is what you want from your artist, one who can do that!  You also want one who does not just do a boring, generic, all black silhouette.  Make sure their work is clean looking, and not as though they rough cut it.  There are some great silhouette artists around, and you should try many of them.  They all will add a different interpretation of you.  Some are psychic (yes, I did say that), like well, I am.  So, if you are lucky, they can inspire you for not a dollar more and tell you some great way you can capture your everyday dreams.  For more fun info, please see SilhouettesbyCindiblogspot, and join SilhouettesbyCindiFacebook.  I really go into a more sophisticated description of the art.  In the meantime, take care of your silhouette (body and mind), hug yourself and be good to others.  Silhouette sweet hugs to you!  Love, your silhouette guru, Cindi!