Category: House Portraits

I hate to turn away a person who needs my help in capturing their family home and all those treasured memories. No matter how insurmountable the task is, my goal is to memorialize the house the way it looked when they, their siblings, or parents grew up there. A house portrait will be in the family for generations, so it's important to me to honor the true spirit of that special home. The circumstances are always different, but in many cases the home has now been sold to new owners and no longer looks anything like it did in the past. Or worse, the home, with all its happy family memories hidden within it walls, has been torn down with no trace. Often, the only existing photos are faded and…

For over a decade, I’ve received requests for custom, hand-crafted, watercolor house portraits from across the USA. Some prospective clients are concerned that their home has too many obstacles that would deter me — like problematic landscaping, street construction, less-than-ideal weather, visible power lines, neighbors’ homes, etc. I assure them that I don’t let these stand in my way in depicting the home’s best view! While certain obstacles may keep you from taking the perfect photo of your house, that won’t stop me from painting a lovely portrait of your home. Take a look at this video and you will get the idea... Impossible portraits are only possible with hand-crafted original paintings What do I mean by this bold statement? Try changing a season, removing unsightly cars and make a generally…

As an artist, I am lucky to receive new commission requests for house portraits every week. However, I also choose my own subjects. Sometimes I make my choices based on a series I'm creating about a specific architectural style (ie. Tudor Homes or Victorians) or an individual city or town (ie. San Francisco, CA or Clayton, MO). The owners of these selected homes often ask how I came to choose their house. I thought about what inspires me to select an architectural subject for one of my paintings. I've come up with twelve "art inspiring" traits depicted in many of my favorite portraits. How many art inspiring traits does your home have? The home is obviously loved. It’s well maintained and often has unique and intriguing features attached to the…

First Phase of House Portrait Series of Greater St. Louis Completed! [caption id="attachment_37213" align="aligncenter" width="2225"] Class St. Louis historic building: original painting of Spine Cafe and Book Store in the Benton Park neighborhood, St. Loui[/caption] Watercolor paintings covering 21 distinct areas Situated on the banks of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, St. Louis became the “Gateway to the West” in the 19th century for the adventurers and settlers following the path of Lewis and Clark into the new frontier. Early architecture in St. Louis had strong French influences along with Victorian, Italianate, Federal and Colonial styles. Tudor homes became popular in St. Louis in the early 1900s. This architectural mix is reflected in neighborhoods like Benton Park, Lafayette Square and Carondelet. I can truly say that the the residents in this…

Illinois architecture captured in my hand-painted house portraits  The “Prairie State” of Illinois runs from urban in the north to rural in the south, and this diversity extends to Illinois’ architecture. The most obvious examples of Illinois' architectural variety can be found in the state's largest city -- Chicago. After the Chicago Fire of 1871, the city went on to influence the nation with its architectural innovation and originality. The  heritage of Illinois found in their historic homes and buildings  Illinois, the Land of Lincoln, achieved statehood in 1818. Its largest and most populous city, Chicago, became a booming metropolis due to its prime location on Lake Michigan and connection to eastern ports via the Erie Canal. In the second half of the 19th century, the need for workers in…