It's one thing to describe the process of painting, but quite another to describe the experience of painting. To create a composition that is inspirational or to depict the whole of a client's life in a single portrait is a challenge that I find to be immensely enjoyable yet entirely humbling.

Each new commission brings with it the pleasure of meeting new people with varied interests and experiences. It is a great honor to be accepted into their lives, to spend time with their children, to talk with them about their dreams for the future and their love or admiration for the person to be honored in the painting.

When left to the physical act of painting, words pitifully fail to describe that experience. Moments ebb through feelings of fear, uncertainty, relief, exhilaration, and victory. Why go through that roller coaster of emotion? A recurring event I have witnessed with my clients explains it best. A mother arrives to review her child's portrait. She enters the studio and upon seeing the painting tears form in her eyes as she says, "Yes, that's my child." This single moment is better than any ribbon won at the most prestigious art show. To be able to touch the heart of another person to that depth of emotion is why I paint.

- Brenda Hash