Portrait Artist Elaine Lilling Paints Oil Portrait of Governor Allen's Wife

Portrait of Susan Allen, Former First Lady of Virginia*

Capturing the genuine warmth and sincerity of Mrs. Allen on canvas posed quite an artistic challenge for me. She is such a lovely woman… passionately devoted to home, family, and her role as stateswoman for the Commonwealth of Virginia… that I hardly knew where to begin.

This was a very important painting for me, and I was determined to capture as much of Mrs. Allen's personality in the portrait as I could.

The Artist and Mrs. Allen at Richmond's historical Valentine Museum

Mrs. Allen graciously consented to several interviews and photo sessions. From these I developed three very different compositions, and presented her with full size mockups of each sketched in charcoal. She chose the pose that was to become the final portrait.

Mrs. Allen posed in her inaugural gown for the portrait. It was a magnificently beaded dress, very heavy for her to wear, and very difficult for me to capture on canvas. I used an under painting and glazed in the colors. With all the layering and glazing, the painting took nearly a year to complete.

The painting was originally conceived to be on display in a new First Lady’s sitting room in the Governor’s Mansion, and was to hang next to a nineteenth century portrait of Pocahontas. That meant the portrait had to be of a transitional style, or it would have been too jarring next to Virginia’s legendary Indian princess. It also meant it had to have some of the same regal air of mystery contained in the earlier portrait.

The Finished Portrait

* Governor Allen has since become Senator Allen.

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