As noted by his biographer , H. L. Wellington , in referring to the portrait of Lily Carstairs which formed part of the Royal Academy Exhibition of 1915 , Orpen was fond of painting women sitters against a black background , lighting the figure from two sides , an arrangement which gave luminosity and a certain ethereal appearance to his unfaltering but matter of fact statement ... Bruce Arnold noted Orpen 's interest in self-portraiture : his self-portraits are often searching and dramatic .
`` Orpen was fond of painting women sitters against a black background , lighting the figure from two sides , an arrangement which gave luminosity and a certain ethereal appearance to his unfaltering but matter of fact statement '' .