Naturalism and Distortion

When an artist reproduces an image as it is seen in nature, it is known as naturalism, but has also been called realism. Distortion, on the other hand, is the opposite. The artist will purposefully exaggerate and manipulate the proportions to create a distorted image.

As you see in this first image, the Mona Lisa, her proportions are believable and realistic. She looks like she would in nature. This is a naturalistic portrait.

As seen in this second image, inspired by the first, her proportions are way off and she does not look as she would in nature. This is an example of distortion.