Stan Hurr Portraits

Recent Live Portraits

2011-09-07T08:55:00.000-07:00

Just to give you some idea of the diversity of people who sit for me at the shopping centres I work in , mostly in the London area.

2011-06-29T00:28:00.000-07:00

This is a miracle baby! I drew her portrait in Walthamstow, East London. Her grandmother told me that the baby`s mother had no idea she was pregnant when she gave birth to her!

2011-05-23T12:46:00.000-07:00

This portrait of these 2 charming ladies - mum & daughter - will be flying to Zimbabwe, as the mother is going back for a visit to that troubled country., I didn`t have to ask them to smile, they were chortling for the whole time it took me to do their portraits - about 45 minutes.

2011-05-03T12:58:00.000-07:00

An interesting couple sat for me when I did portraits (& caricatures!) at a shopping centre in Farnborough, Hampshire. The beautiful, graceful lady is from Poland and her friend is from Afghanistan, he was amazedwhen I told him that I stayed in Kabul for 3 weeks in 1979 when it was a hippie\tourist stopping off point on the great route through the middle east to Asia.

2011-02-14T14:11:00.000-08:00

Did this portrait of the great Jimi Hendrix last week to show at a shopping centre that I was promoting my work in over the weekend. Along came a man who said to me - `I used to know him`, turned out to be a record producer who worked with him in the 60`s. He also worked with Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and many others from those crazy days. This is why I like to get out of the studio, where I only have Radio 4 for company, and get out to busy places where one never knows who will pass by.

2011-02-02T00:15:00.000-08:00

This lovely lady bought the dress expressly for the portrait sitting,she was a bit disappointed that I couldn`t fit much of it in.

CD Album Cover.

2010-11-16T13:08:00.000-08:00

I got a request from a scottish band ( from Glasgow) to do a caricature of them playing their guitars.

They kindly sent me a copy of the album- laid back jangly guitars, good songs- nice!

Indian Wedding

2010-11-09T12:38:00.000-08:00

Such a pleasure to be asked to do an oil painting from such a great wedding photo, the Indian wedding clothes are gorgeous and great fun to paint. Makes an English wedding seem a bit subdued!

No Margin for Error

2010-10-04T14:13:00.001-07:00

Drawing direct is never easy and sometimes the delicate faces of young girls I find a real test, some times I manage to `get them` and other times go a bit wide of the mark!

Hurr Family Exhibition

2010-09-21T12:55:00.000-07:00

After many years apart, my brother was re-united with his daughter Victoria five years ago, now an art & architecture teacher. Last week we had an exhibition together in Surrey.My brother with his realist landscapes & nudes, me with my neo-impressionist stuff & Victoria with abstract prints.It was a happy occasion.

Variety makes life interesting.

2010-09-15T07:14:00.000-07:00

One of the good things about working in areas like East London is the great variety of nationalities there for me to draw. a young English footballer (in an Argentine shirt), a Turkish man in an interesting hat and a beautiful girl from the Ukraine.

Two Beauties

2010-07-27T15:00:00.000-07:00

Drawing portraits is always a challenge but when they`re as beautiful as these two girls ,who sat for me consecutively last Saturday at a shopping mall in Hounslow, there is less margin for error.The pressure is on to do their beauty justice. The dark-haired girl is French & the blonde from ( I think) Poland.

A Survivor

2010-07-21T13:07:00.000-07:00

One of the great bonuses for an artist drawing portraits in public places are some of the interesting people who dare to take the hot seat for a portrait. This 8o-year-old man who was born in Danzig is a survivor of the concentration camps in Poland. In 1939 children were rescued in an operation known as the `kinder transport`.He was the only one of his family to survive.

2010-07-13T22:28:00.000-07:00

I wish it would always work like that - a perfect photo to work from and a result that I am actually satisfied with. Pastels are a great medium for animals, especially the lovely iridescent sheen on horses.

Poster for a good cause

2010-07-12T13:34:00.000-07:00

A traffic cop mate (for whom I have done several caricatures) asked me to do a freebie poster design for the Help for Heroes charity. I did this oil showing latest army & police vehicles.Now selling by the thousand so I`m told.

In Memoriam....

2010-06-09T00:21:00.000-07:00

... of a lovely girl who sat for a portrait a few years ago. She died suddenly a few weeks ago. I remember her lively, charming personality. She was a beautiful girl.

Always expect the unexpected....

2010-05-25T04:54:00.000-07:00

...when working the public in a shopping mall

What big eyes you got!

2010-03-31T14:40:00.000-07:00

I loved drawing this charcoal of the soulful -eyed indian boy. He sat like a statue, it must`ve taken 20 minutes tops!

Van Gogh look-alike.

2010-03-31T13:42:00.000-07:00

This man is a dead ringer for a self- portrait Van Gogh did. Uncanny!

Snowed in!

2010-01-06T13:07:00.000-08:00

Severe weather gives me time to catch up on oil commissions and preparations for 2010. 2010!! I can`t believe I am still alive in this science fiction time of mobile phones and computers, where are the flying cars though?

A great subject for a live caricature

2009-10-12T13:13:00.000-07:00

This man has the most infectious laugh on earth, I wish I had a recording of it to listen to when I`m feeling down.

2009-10-06T12:58:00.000-07:00

Its the run in to Christmas & I`m getting orders for presents already.I bought some mince pies in a Marks & Spencer the other day, madness.The above is a portrait I did live of a shy little Polish girl in a shopping centre in Luton.The other is of a beautiful girl drawn on the same day-only 11 years old,I don`t think I did her justice.

Lonely cat

2009-09-29T12:39:00.000-07:00

I did a multiple portrait of 2 cats for a lady in EastLondon, she kindly sent me a photo of one of them snuggling up to the framed job, unfortunately the other cat died, so perhaps he was doing it for company.

2009-08-30T21:36:00.000-07:00

I love to work from the live model. On my (almost) weekly visits to shopping centres I try to do as many direct portraits as possible. I work mainly in centres in East London & Birmingham.
Here are some examples-

Back to Blighty!

2009-08-27T00:06:00.000-07:00

I have been a blog reader for a while, so now here goes my first ever blog.
Just back from the south of France,we stayed at the cute little house I sketched in watercolour and pencil.
Hard to adjust to rainy,cold England again! It sure was hot down there, only one dodgy day out of 3 & a half weeks. It was so hot I couldnt find the energy to sketch or paint, I just managed to get done the 5 commissions that HAD to be done.