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Commissioning a Portrait
Further Details
Explore the Essentials of Being Painted
Portraits have an enduring and enigmatic quality that has enthralled artists and viewers for centuries. Not only do they capture a particular moment in a person's life, with a mood and character all of their own, but as the years slip by, and the sitter matures, their meaning changes in a beautiful and mysterious way.
Portraits, like people, are one of a kind. They are irreplaceable. And as they can last for centuries, they have a peculiar, defiant, even consoling relationship with time.
Portraits have an enduring and enigmatic quality that has enthralled artists and viewers for centuries. Not only do they capture a particular moment in a person's life, with a mood and character all of their own, but as the years slip by, and the sitter matures, their meaning changes in a beautiful and mysterious way. Portraits, like people, are one of a kind. They are irreplaceable. And as they can last for centuries, they have a peculiar, defiant, even consoling relationship with time.
Many people think about having a portrait painted for a long time before making it a reality, sometimes even years. Some may worry portraiture is a little vainglorious, or that the process will be embarrassing or uncomfortable. Experience has told us that these apprehensions quickly fade after a visit to the studio. In fact sitters are often reluctant to finish their painting, as the collaborative process of being painted - and the experience of being "seen" for who they are - is rather unique. It is part of the experience: spending time in artist's studio, being involved in making an artwork, learning about the technical process, gazing out of the studio window, listening to inspiring music, conversing (or not) and being sensitively catered to with coffees, cakes, lunches, claret. etc.
The process is always a collaboration with the sitter, and we champion an open dialogue throughout.
"I leave you my portrait so that you will have my presence all the days and nights that I am away from you."
Frida Kahlo
"What could be more simple and more complex,
more obvious and more profound than a portrait?”
Charles Baudelaire
"Spend any time even on the peripheries of the lives of Mr. & Mrs. Philip Cath and you may find it hard to resist the magnetic pull that they emit."
House & Garden Magazine
English Portraiture is the portrait practice of London artists Mr. and Mrs. Philip Cath, who work collaboratively on every canvas. Painting together for over 15 years, they have a shared love of historical painting and base all their portraits on traditional life sittings and preparatory drawings.