“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” — Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela was a passionate leader… someone who spent 27 years in prison for his convictions, fought apartheid, and triumphantly became South Africa’s first black chief executive. When I was commissioned to create this portrait of Madiba… I immersed myself in the life and times of one of the world’s great leaders.

You can view the entire painting process, narrated by yours truly, in one minute. Do read on for a step-by-step analysis of the process.

The collage elements were chosen to illustrate not only Madiba’s life, but the world he impacted so greatly.

First, I applied orange and red tones as the foundation layers on the hair, eyes and background. Next, I applied a dark wash over Mandela’s suit jacket, and began painting the tones… shadows first.

The process is time consuming, I use a size 00 brush to paint each shape in two tones… and each tone requires two layers for a consistent surface.

Once delving into the midtones, the portrait is beginning to come together.

One of the most exciting… and confusing moments in the process… is when you have one highlight remaining…

Once here, Mandela felt grounded… so it was time for the background.

Initially, we explored the idea of a solid background… but a landscape was too tantalizing to ignore. The painting was tonally modeled after my portrait of Indiana Jones...

Each work, naturally, takes on a life of its own… but you can see the influence.

Mandela’s hair is striking… I began with three separate blue-influenced grey tones…

Adding highlights, followed by small splashes of the warm tones in Madiba’s face for visual cohesion.

And, finally… with some tweaks on the clothes and the white of the eyes… Nelson Mandela is complete! Thank you Claude and Diane for working with me on this painting… it was a distinct pleasure. Enjoy Madiba!

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