Jan Clague

‘During the “Lockdowns” I really missed seeing family and friends. So I asked them to send a photo they liked of themselves, and then I did a portrait for them to keep. When we finally came out of the last “lockdown” I had painted 22 portraits. I give you 4 of them. Sam was the first one I did, he is our son’s son. Then Ian sent me a photo of him and Sam in silly hats. So I called this one “Deputy Dawg and his sidekick – Vincent Van Gopher”. Our daughter, Nikki, heard just before the first lockdown that she had gained her Ph.D.in Physiotherapy and she is now lecturing at Liverpool Uni. So I did a portrait of her holding her thesis. ( This is one of my favourites). Finally my half-sister, Kath, with her grandson Avery; who was called ‘baby-bird’, when he was very young.

The K.A.S. had a full programme, which started with ‘en plein air’ sessions through this last summer, and then we went inside, meeting at the Abbott Hall Centre during September – December. I enclose a painting of ‘Lucy’s garden’ and a pencil portrait done over a morning session very recently. Labelled ‘Tony Impey’

I nearly always paint in oils I find it so fascinating and satisfying seeing the painting develop in depth and colour as the layers are put on. Sometimes as many as six layers; and of course one can always return to a painting and add more glazes, and layers if needed’.