My interest in music is evident in the work in this gallery. I like watching musicians perform and, more so, when they are rehearsing or practicing. There is something, which is not self-conscious about someone who is seriously involved with their creative work. I try to get my sitters for commissioned portraits to be equally un-self-conscious. I will do this by working with the sitter in his or her own environment, whenever that is possible, rather than in my studio. I ask my sitters to talk to me and to tell me about themselves while I draw and photograph them. I rarely paint from life but instead will paint the portrait in my studio using the drawings, the photographs and my memory. Towards the conclusion of the work I will ask the sitter to give me more of their time so that I can add the little things that will help to make the portrait complete.
A commissioned portrait is, in my opinion, the most demanding of artistic activities. It can also be the most satisfying. The artist is required to satisfy two, sometimes three masters; himself, the commissioner, and the sitter.
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