In the early 90’s, during a ceasefire in civil war, I travelled to Mozambique with my father. While there we attended a church conference in the small coastal town of Maxixe. This man was part of the gathering of several hundred people and I recall wanting his photograph as soon as I saw him. Dad asked permission and I took a couple shots. Months later back at college in the U.S., I decided oils would be the best medium to use for this painting. At that time I had only painted one other portrait in oils and and wasn’t sure I had the experience to pull it off. To this day I am still told it is one of my best…but I give the credit to the subject who you can tell at a glance is an extraordinary person. His personality and character absolutely shines through.
A couple years after completing the piece my Dad was again in the same part of Mozambique, saw this man, and gave him a photograph of the painting. I was told he liked it.
