En Grisaille Miniatures

En grisaille is an ancient term, originally used for a greyscale underdrawing created as a guide for painting. Charles first cuts these miniature portraits from white paper before drawing the details in fine graphite.

Commissioning an en grisaille portrait

You do not need to visit our studio.

You’ll find that creating a silhouette portrait is an enjoyable process!

It takes time, and your involvement in the process will be crucial to a successful commission. We make this really easy for you with our five-stage commissioning process.

@silhouettist five-stage commissioning process

This is the process we will follow to make your portraits. Please read and be prepared to take part.

1. You place an order, optionally attaching some reference photos after you check out
2. We invite you to choose a date and time for a virtual portrait sitting
   • if no suitable studio day is coming up, we’ll schedule a bespoke sitting for you (dependant on Charles’ availability)
   • you can ask Charles to work from photographs only, but please read the relevant terms and conditions first
3. Once we agree a date and time for a sitting, you will meet Charles and pose for him at a Zoom meeting
   • during the sitting Charles will make a white-paper cutting, make some initial sketches and take a screen shot of the pose
4. After the sitting he’ll work on the drawing. He’ll then send a proof photo by email for your comment or approval
   • if any alterations are necessary these will be made before a second (usually final) proof is sent for approval
   • if you feel further alterations are needed we may ask you to appear at a second virtual sitting and/or send further reference photos
5. Once you’re pleased with the result, Charles will mount the portrait on a card colour of your choice. He’ll then sign and deliver it to you, together with a stamped certificate of authenticity
   • we include tracked worldwide delivery in the fee

The whole process may take time, dependant on Charles’ schedule and your own participation. If you need these portraits for a particular date (eg: an anniversary or birthday) please let us know when you place the order.