Daily Painting

This time of year, I’m always asked to do likeness portraits of people but I often wonder where they’re going to hang them or how the portraitee will receive their own image -no matter how accurate the representation. I think making gifts of portraits to people who are not necessarily obliged to have them done, like presidents or deans, can often be fraught with stress. Getting the subject to sit for the artist takes away the surprise and busy people often can’t make the time to sit for the artist anyway. Photographs provided as reference can be unusable due to either quality or expression or even that people don’t know where to hang a painting of themselves in their homes. I always propose a solution such as this ‘Portrait about Jenny’ as a way to make a highly personal and unique gift for a loved one or other Very Important Person. The recipient need know nothing of the  painting until it’s presented. The portrait is painted as a classical still life and contains the elements of the subject’s life that interest them the most. A Portrait About You. To read more, click on this link.

Now we’re definitely in the run-up to Christmas, I’m going to be putting the finishing touches on several of these again. It’s always good to hear about the reactions of the receivers after the fact. Jenny loved her portrait and that really makes these projects for me.

Childhood is fleeting. My garden is strewn with discarded toys left by my children as they move onto the next plaything. I turn them up sometimes as I’m digging around during my infrequent bouts of gardening. They do take on an interesting patina; dents and scratches of their use that can make for interesting subjects for painting studies. This little teapot is from a set made from brightly coloured tin, all of whose parts are scattered over the lawn. The only thing I’m wondering is; how long before I’m left sitting out in the garden, all dented and careworn and the subject of interest from passing artists?

Oils on gessoed panel. 7″ x 7″