I enjoy painting children and especially boys. Having been a boy once myself; I feel a certain bond with my subjects. A painter may get to paint the President of the United States but he doesn’t get to be President. All men had to be boys at some point.

I try with my portraits of boys to keep certain masculinity with the portrait, even with the youngest of subjects. This is achieved with the composition, pose and background. I will talk with the boy and parents and get a good idea of what the child is like and then observe him. It is always important in a portrait to go beyond just the likeness and get the personality of the sitter as well.

In the end the portrait should still be that of a boy and not a child posed as an adult.

A portrait of any child is for the adult commissioning it. I pay close attention to what their desires are for the portrait and together we find the most suitable look.