step-mother-in-law portrait

My father-in-law just remarried, and I needed to come up with a wedding gift now that they’re back from Thailand. The two of them are very hard to shop for, so I painted a picture. But it was SO difficult; I was working from a bad flash photo taken in a restaurant, so I didn’t have much to go by. And I didn’t want to stylise it too much, because I wasn’t sure she’d appreciate that. They’ve been together for eight years. She and I don’t have much in common, but she’s a lovely person and we get along very well. She’s practically my age, which probably helps.

Here’s a good date for the diary if you’re in London: Paul Gravett’s launch party next Thurs, 6 March for Manhua! China Comics Now!. It’s an exhibition he’s curating for the China Now festival at the London College of Communications. See Paul’s website for details. I’m sad I won’t be able to go; I already booked a ticket for another event, but I’m not sure I made the best choice.