When painting a portrait, the artist tries to capture the "spirit" of the person he is painting. He uses his skills to create the illusion that the painting is as alive as the person it represents. It is my belief that a skillful painting can impart as much, or even more of a feeling of "alive-ness" than many photographs. Can you *feel* Nicole's personality radiating through her portrait? Without this feeling, a portrait is dead, no matter how skillful the techniques employed.

Portraits can be done in a variety of media including pastel, acrylic and Chinese ink brush on rice paper, each imparting a different character to the portrait.