A major impact of Chuck Close’s work is his dedication to committing the faces of friends and family to memory, immortalizing them through his art. Shirley (2007) portrays the artist’s mother-in-law, Shirley Rose, exemplifying his ability to capture the personal and intimate details of the character.

In Close’s paintings, mathematical precision merges with a sense of gauzy abstraction. The viewer’s eye, initially overwhelmed by the array of small, sensuous color fields, gradually brings the subject’s face into focus. Each square, filled with a blur of pigment, works individually as a tiny abstract painting, yet together they converge into a highly detailed and vibrant portrait that is rich in color and tone. This interplay between precision and abstraction is central to Close’s unique method of creating lifelike, yet dynamic, representations.