I’m currently working on studies for a new major portrait painting. It’s a private commission, organised via email correspondence. After confirmation I travelled to photograph the subject, Natalie.
We met in the morning at her family home. I found a spot with beautiful natural light and asked Natalie about her favourite music. While I photographed her, we chatted and sang along to Billy Joel turned up loud. Her friend, talented makeup artist Tre Dallas, took an impromptu video with his smartphone and we shared it on socials. It felt natural, like preserving a happy memory.
Afterwards, they met another friend for lunch and I tagged along. It was fun to hang out. It also gave me a chance to get a sense of Natalie’s vibe, the inexplicable feeling we get when we’re around someone.
In the evening I reviewed my photos and made notes. While photos are a good reference they are also innately flawed because they flatten perspective. That’s why some people are described as photogenic – their features withstand the automated transition to two dimensions. I don’t want my new portrait paintings to look like photos. I prefer the sitter to look sculptural and for the artwork to convey something of the feeling of being in their presence.
Back at the studio I printed and collaged several photographs to recreate my memory of Natalie. Scrawled in pencil are notes on what to adjust in the next study. After I’ve corrected the flattened perspective, I’ll let my intuition take over.
My new portrait series began several years ago. Except for my recent portrait of Neha Kale, they were commissions that will remain private unless the sitters want to unveil them in public some day. For me, it’s a privilege to create each portrait. Doing so requires mutual trust. When the painting is actualised it becomes an extension of someone else. I feel that showing these portraits without the involvement of the sitter would be inappropriate.
Natalie is happy for me to share the process as well as the final artwork. However I’ll send her a private link to this entry before I publish it as a basic courtesy.
A good portrait is an artwork in its own right. But the experience of looking at it does not automatically belong to everyone. I prefer it to be a gift from the sitter – and the best gifts are offered freely, never under pressure. Thank you, Natalie.
Image: First study for Portrait of Natalie on the desk in my studio.