In 2011, I was appointed the first ever Artist in Residence at Claridge’s. The idea, cooked up by the doyenne of London PRs, Paula Fitzherbert, was simple; instead of photographing the hotel’s illustrious guests - as had happened in the past - we would ask them to sit for a drawing. There was a lot to live up to: images of Jackie O, Winston Churchill, Audrey Hepburn and HM the Queen stand sentinel in the lobby, symbolizing an era when glamour went with gravitas and the world looked better in black and white. Then too, there was the not inconsiderable task of persuading high-profile visitors juggling the kind of schedules that would give a politician pause, that they might like to pose for a portrait. Somewhat to our surprise, they have all agreed, and today the drawings hang together in the ‘Talking Heads’ gallery. What conversations they have. Read More