conceptualisation.

The term 'limelight' refers to both being the focus of public attention, and the type of stage lighting used in theatres and music halls. In The Art of Painting, Vermeer focuses most of natural sunlight on the woman - the subject of the painter's artwork who is about to be preserved in a painting.

There are two internal vanity spaces for the subject of the painting, and the subject of my narrative - a retired actress who is unable to let go of her youth. She craves to be youthfully beautiful and the center of attention once more - the limelight, the belle of the ball, the star of the show! But alas, the passing of time has taken its toll on her. She has become an ageing beauty who refuses to let her physical appearance change au naturale.

The plan and sections of the vanity rooms are the same - putting forth the idea that no matter how much one tries to mask age through the decoration of physical appearace, one's biological body clock will always tell the truth. The smaller room has shutter-windows facing a southerly direction, never allowing any direct sunlight inside. It contains floor to ceiling mirrors on two walls and is elevated on a platform, allowing the subject of the narrative to pace around the room gazing at her reflection, posing and overanalysing her appearance, but never being exposed to too much light in case they expose the signs of ageing.

The larger space is a very large open area with barely any walls - very exposed to the weather and elements.  Natural weathering of the vanity space occurs as the actress ages. In the center of the room is the actress's makeup table, elevated on a platform and surrounded by a costume rack that runs along the back wall and halfway along the side. The vertical blinds on the north-eastern front cast shadows which move across the room as each day passes by, reminding the actress that ageing is unavoidable. A giant mirror is suspended from the ceiling - a metaphor for the pressure the actress puts on herself.