Memorial Paintings

So on the side here and there I'll be asked to create a painting which I've just started calling memorial paintings. Mainly because they are usually commissioned to create a painting for someone that they really love and admire, most of the time someone that has passed on. Sort of a collage of their life. They're pretty basic, just a portrait of the person and then a collage of their life. This is the most recent one I just did for Beau's aunt of her father. It was a gift for her brother for Christmas. I've normally been doing this with actual watercolors and paper... but then I had children and it has been a LOT harder to get those paints out and do it that way. This one was my first attempt at doing it all on the computer for various reasons. It is quicker for me, easier to resize things where the other method was a lot harder to determine what size and where and how to place the collage stuff. It has also made it possible for them to get multiple prints of it rather than the only origional. Most of the time there is at least one other person they would like to share it with. And then we found out one other major reason for doing it this way. When this finished painting - framed and all was shipped to her brother - UPS completely destroyed it. Ruined the frame, mat and destroyed the artwork. Thank goodness it was done on the computer and we could easily have another print made and shipped to her. I would have died it if had been the origional. They would have still wanted one and to do another painting twice would have been torture! I really enjoy doing these when I get the opportunity. I was trying to figure out how many I've done so far and I think this one makes my 9th.