Second Place

Sponsored by: Portrait Society of America, Vasari Classic Artists’ Oil Colors, Artefex and Silver Brush Limited

Casey Childs Pleasant Grove, UT, USA Sliver, oil on aluminum, 30 x 20" (76 x 51 cm)

Inspiration: Casey’s paintings seem to come together very organically, and this piece was no exception. He met his model at a local restaurant where she was a waitress. She had beautiful, long, brown hair and looked just like a model from a Waterhouse painting. After asking her to sit for him, they scheduled a date, and when that day arrived, she showed up to the studio looking quite different. She had gone to a hair-styling college just days before where they cut her long brown hair and dyed it bright red! She was a bit embarrassed by the drastic change but Casey assured her he would work with it. Although she still seemed uneasy the entire time, what resulted was this beautiful, yet awkwardly bold pose, adding charm to the finished painting and inspiring the title, Sliver.

Artistic Path: After graduation from Brigham Young University, Casey worked in graphic design for 10 years while painting on the side. Today, focusing full-time on painting has allowed for an important transition in his work, both in subject matter and overall process. Even though he fully appreciates how great it is to now paint full time, he remains grateful for that design job and what it taught him.