General Pointers

A portrait painting is a communication, a personal, beautiful and timeless preservation of an image of a person or pet, which could never be conveyed in words.

“What impassions me most – much, much more than all the rest of my métier – is the portrait, the modern portrait," Vincent wrote to his younger sister in early June 1890, a month before his death. "I should like – you see, I'm far from saying that I can, but I'm going to try anyway – I should like to do portraits which will appear as revelations to people in a hundred years' time “ Vincent van Gogh

Portraits will tell your story forever. What would make your portrait special?

Traditional Portraits: This type of portraiture enhances expressions and the emotional appeal conveyed by the subject. Portraits of this type usually centre on the face or faces of the person or pet. They are not necessarily ‘just happy faces’.  The portrait could convey many emotions such as wonder, confidence, thoughtfulness or surprised delight.

Story telling portraits:  This type of portraiture ‘tells a story’.  It usually includes more area to emphasize special clothing, settings or props, which illustrate activities or interests. Perhaps you wish to record an anniversary or graduation. Perhaps you wish to include a beloved car, home or garden as a background or may be a place which means something special to you.

Group Portraits: The emphasis here is on relationships. It is much favored by companies or schools. Family groups are very popular, perhaps grandparents with their grandchildren, or perhaps children with their pets.

Contemporary Portraits:  Be creative.  The unplanned ‘off-guard’ portrait may well reveal the real personality and make great portrait memories to last a lifetime. The possibilities are endless.

Oil Paintings.  Have a high status factor, oils being what the Old Masters used. Oils give rich, deep colours  which maintain their intensity when dry.  They dry slowly, allowing plenty of time to work and to blend colours. The proportion of oil to spirit dictates the drying time. Once dried, oil portraits can be overpainted without disturbing underlying layers. The paint can be applied thickly or in thin, smooth washes. It is mixed with solvents and oils, so it is necessary to work in a well-ventilated area. Brushes are cleaned with white spirit or similar solvent. Some people are allergic to the solvents  They should be kept away from small children..

Watercolours: Water colours are the most often used medium.  They are the cheapest to set yourself up with; all you need buy is a set of basic colours, a brush or two of different sizes, some paper, plus a board and brown gummed tape if you intend to stretch the paper.  The paint is mixed with water and brushes cleaned with water so the problems of having solvents lying around is avoided. As the paint is quite transparent, it's hard to hide mistakes in a watercolour painting. It is also necessary to allow for colours being lighter once they've dried than how they appeared when you painted. There is no white paint in watercolour; the white comes from the paper you're painting on showing through the paint.

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