I was commissioned by the Managing Director of Hachette Ireland, the publishing company, to create a still life painting for one of his colleagues who retired earlier this year. Jim was in touch with me before and I created two other portraits for him in the past, one of his friend at a seaside and the other only recently of his two cavapoo dogs Cooper and Molly for his wife’s birthday.
This painting is quite different in not only the content, but also the level of detail required to complete it. I had to be very precise when it comes to the fonts and the shapes of the books. The books selected for the shelf were of significance to the colleague in question as she worked on publishing them with the authors within Hachette Ireland.
The canvas is a wide format at 30 x 60 cm. I used acrylic paint on stretched canvas. I opted for flat brushes in various sizes to create a sharp edge for the books. However, I wanted to retain some level of hand made lines and despite of using a ruler a lot of the time, I painted free hand for the majority of the time. I had some small sized round brushes for the fonts and details in the mug and book covers.
Jim was very pleased with the final painting when he received a scanned copy of the canvas from me:
Hi Ivana! This looks terrific, you are amazing! The detail is incredible… Thank you again for this and I appreciate you getting this done for us in time, she will be delighted…
Jim, on the completed painting of books by Hachette sitting on a bookshelf, Dublin, February 2025
Due to the detail in the painting, it took a little while to get it all right. I was painting for about two weeks and the sketch itself took up at least two thirds of that time. I wanted to get all the detail down in a line sketch first, before I moved to adding colour blocks.
The client required for the painting to be framed before posting. I ordered a very simple limed wood tray frame for canvas. There is a shadow gap between the edge of the canvas and the frame and this I feel elevates the painting even further.
I applied two coats of Satin UV Varnish to the surface of the canvas. This secures the paint in its place, keeps the dust away and is fully removable. I took some photographs before I posted the painting. It was well received by the colleague. I hope she is enjoying her retirement now and has the painting hanging in her home 🙂
It was a pleasure to paint something completely different. I painted books before, but only as a backdrop to another subject. This time the books take a centre stage. I really enjoyed applying the different colours which work so well together. The plain background helps them all stand out.
I am currently working on a painting of a springer spaniel in a park setting. His name is Goose and he recently passed away. The family is having a painting created by me as a memory and keepsake of their beloved pet. I have also just completed a painting of the Clanard Court Hotel in Athy and I will be posting some details on that soon…