Portrait July 2026: Portrait No. 1
Relection
Brooke remains endlessly inspired by the art-marking Helen has threaded throughout their lives together. While reading through Brooke’s submission, I reflected on all the ways our relationships bestow creativity into our rituals and practices.
Helen’s knitwork immediately called out to me. Brooke trusted me to create something that went beyond the original photograph.
The challenge of remaining expressive to capture the undulating rivers of yarn, yet technical enough to represent its handiwork was a pleasure to work through.
Shared with permission. Thank you for your trust Brooke.
A portrait in gouache of Brooke’s granny, Helen. 2026.
From Brooke:
My granny, Helen, is my one surviving grandparent and the matriarch of my family… …She is an artist and creator and is always wearing at least one thing she made by hand. In this photo she is vulnerably joyful with me, particularly, and I believe she photographs best with me because she trusts me. This trust is essential to our bond.
Every July, I create a small collection of original portrait studies in gouache. These intimate 4 × 6 paintings allow me to explore new faces, experiment with color and light, and celebrate the people behind each. Rather than accepting commissions for these pieces, I invite applications and thoughtfully select a limited number of participants each year.
This is what I love so much about Lex’s work—they can take a simple reference photo and effortlessly embody a personality so unique that a two-dimensional portrait easily elicits a multi-dimensional understanding of a subject you’ve never met or even heard of! This is exactly how I would want my loved ones portrayed, because they aren’t just painted—they’re MANIFESTED.