I was contacted by a young man from the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards to do a set of Vanity Fair style ‘Spy’ portraits of him and his fellow Dragoons, to mark the end of a few years service together as they started going off to new postings.
Being a fan of the Vanity Fair style illustrations, he stated that he had looked for an artist who did caricatures ‘in the style of’ a number of times. Luckily, a Google search led him to my Etsy page of all places.
After a while, I received a great series of photos.
The client had orchestrated a photo shoot of him and his mates at (I’m guessing) their officers’ mess. In the photos he managed to encapsulate the spirit of Leslie Ward’s sublime ‘Spy’ caricatures. The poses, their expressions, the mood…perfect! There were close-ups of faces, badges, medals, and epaulettes. An extra bonus was that they each posed in a different uniform. The client had anticipated, and provided everything I needed.
I had a good feeling about this one.
I wasn’t wrong. The entire commission was a joy from start to finish. Swift replies to all emails, approvals straight away with each preliminary sketch I sent, and the subsequent final pieces. I managed to nail each one with hardly any amendments!
The commission coincided with a series of TV cycling events on 4 consecutive Sundays, so instead of being a cycling widow, I eagerly cracked on with the digital painting of the portraits. As they all wore a different uniform, each one was as interesting as the last. I know when I’m enthralled in my work when time gets away, and before I know it, it’s the evening. But boy do my back and shoulders suffer the next day!
I wish these young men all the best in their new postings.
