Henry Mulholland Michael Snape

Henry Mulholland first met Michael Snape (who also has a portrait in this year’s Archibald Prize) in 1986 when he was a student at East Sydney Technical College. “He had an evening life-drawing class which I went to for a couple of years and we have been friends ever since,” says Mulholland. “He has one of the best art minds in Sydney and that is reflected in the on-going relationships he has with so many students. He sustains friendships because people like hearing his views and his insights.”

Snape often wears a tweed jacket in winter. However, since Mulholland painted the portrait in February, Snape wore summer gear for the sitting. “I decided to combine the jacket with shorts to give the portrait a little eccentricity which fits quite nicely with Michael’s personality,” says Mulholland.

Mulholland likes doing life-size portraits and attempts to get the likeness through the whole body, its weight and stance, not just the head. “I start with the gait,” he says. “Once that feels right, the picture then evolves.” This portrait is painted on masonite board. “I like keeping the painting wet, with a hard surface so the brush really skates around,” says Mulholland. “I got the idea from Clifton Pugh, an artist whose work I have admired ever since I was a kid, especially his portraits.”

Born in Northern Ireland in 1962, Mulholland migrated to Australia in 1973. He has been represented in the Archibald Prize on six previous occasions.