James P Gilmour Simon Johnson PQF

‘Often when I paint a portrait, it can take months,’ says James Gilmour. ‘Applying layers of coloured wax and scraping it back to linen, painting the subject many times on the same canvas. Wax cools rapidly, so work is very fast.’

Gilmour decided to paint Simon Johnson during dinner one evening, and had two subsequent sittings. ‘As a providore and leading figure in the Sydney food scene, I painted him as a simple corner grocer (albeit Woollahra),’ says Gilmour. The PQF in the portrait’s title stands for ‘purveyor of quality food’.

‘This painting came together mercifully quickly, and I feel that it’s caught the moment when he’s just breaking out into his deep, wicked belly laugh. His inability to sit still is manifested in his rapidly moving hands.’

Gilmour was born in Mooroopna, Victoria in 1965. He graduated from the City Art Institute in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Art. This is his first time as a finalist in the Archibald Prize.