So finally, the portrait I have been working on for the prestigious BP portrait competition is finished, after over 60 hours of painting and a lot of layers of paint. Trevor (the model) took the framed painting to the Glasgow courier last week and I am waiting to hear back from the judges. It would be wonderful to get a place in the show, but the odds are against everyone with a very small percentage getting in. At the end of the day, my husband wanted a portrait of himself to mark this point in his life. The competition gave me a deadline to work to, which I often need for personal projects.

Overall, I am pleased that it is a very good likeness of him, and that he looks a bit restless. He was watching Top Gear (the only way to get him to sit still) but he was also glancing out the window into his winter garden which could not yet be tended, as it was still frozen. The Howies T-shirt, ‘Grow some vegetables’ was a present from me many years ago and it is a clue to his favourite hobby, gardening. The dog, Meg, has been our constant companion for over 10 years, so she defiinately had to be in, although the poor cat didn’t get a prime spot. You can imagine him under the sofa somewhere, scheming.
Whether it gets to our the country as part of BP, or just ends up on our living room wall, I am sure it will be much loved by us both over the years to come.