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.
