This portrait was commissioned as a first birthday present from a client whom I completed a couple of portraits for previously. The little boy in the photo is Teddy and in his original photo, he is sitting up in a bed with his grandad beside him. My client wanted me to remove his grandad from the photo and create a sketch of Teddy on his own.
Teddy’s portrait is 30 x 25 cm in size, just a little wider than an A4 page. I used one photograph for the portrait having simplified it a little and adding some more blanket behind him. I shaded the blanket on the right to make it disappear to add a little depth to the portrait.
The photo was great. Teddy has the most wonderful expression and is really connected to the person taking the photograph. I love the way he is playing with his toes and his subtle smile just makes the portrait so special.
Nollaig, my client, was very happy with the finished scanned drawing of the portrait:
Ivana…thank you, it will make a lovely first birthday present for Teddy…Absolutely beautiful Ivana,as always…Well done and thank you.
Nollaig about his commission of Teddy, the lovely baby boy and his portrait I completed in April 2025
I drew Teddy’s portrait with graphite pencils on paper. I started with a line sketch in a HB pencil. I complete the entire outline and I worked very carefully making sure to capture Teddy’s likeness on paper. It makes the rest of the process much easier as I can then concentrate on developing correct tones. Because there is no colour involved, it is very important to capture the light, shadow and most importantly middle values well.
I signed the finished drawing and put Teddy’s name on the bottom of the portrait as my client requested.
The drawing was well received by the baby boy’s parents:
Ivana, Teddy’s parents were thrilled with your work…absolutely delighted. Thank you
Nollaig emailed me after he gifted the portrait to Teddy’s parents in mid April 2025
The portrait travelled all the way to Douglas in Cork. To make sure the drawing was safe, I posted it in a neutral coloured mount, backboard and a plastic cover. I wrapped it well in several layers of cardboard. I also sprayed the finished drawing with an artist fixative. This is to assure the drawing does not smudge and fixes the pencil onto the page. Because graphite is a mineral, it will not fade in time, so the portrait will last for a long time to come. I hope Teddy’s parents will enjoy it…
I used pencils that combine both graphite and charcoal. The charcoal brings an unparallel darkness to the markings I make, whereas the graphite contributes with excellent hardness meaning I can sharpen the pencils to a very sharp point. This allows me to add a lot of detail into any drawing I produce. It also means I can layer my lines without creating an upleasant sheen on the surface. The drawing stays matt and sharp. The pencils I use are Mars Lumograph Black made by Staedtler and Pitt Graphite Matt made by Faber-Castell. I use a variety of hardness, from HB all the way to 8B in Staedtler and 14B in Faber-Castell.
The paper I use is a Fabriano hot pressed 50% cotton. The paper has some subtle texture and is suitable for creating a lot of layers of pencil. This suits me really well to create the depth I want to achieve. The paper is thick enough and sturdy enough for me to work on. I don’t use erasors as I feel they damage the beautiful surface of the paper.
You can commission your own pencil portrait or drawing by contacting me at info@trueimage.ie. I am accepting commissions worldwide and I am open to unusual requests too.