Michael and Dino

The process of drawing someone will often take many sittings, sometimes over months or years (though I’d never admit that to a prospective sitter!).

There are people to whom I would like to return, to keep on drawing them indefinitely. With a few I’m able to do so. And there are those who appear briefly, then are gone.

Michael Antonio Pequez was of the latter variety.

A striking figure, he was talking to a friend outside the Hotel Chelsea entrance. Tall, dressed in black with a blue ruffled shirt, a louche strut and a direct stare. His dog, a Boston Terrier named Dino, was the perfect complement, having one blue eye and one brown and a stare to match that of his owner. Michael agreed to sit for me but needed sustenance first, in the form of chilli from Grey’s Papaya over the street. The drawing went surprisingly well once the chilli had been eaten. There was the foundation for a larger work, but one more session was all I got, after which his phone ceased to be connected.

Far left

Michael Antonio Pequez, November 2006

Graphite, 8¼ x 5 inches

Left Dino, November 2006

Graphite, 8¼ x 5 inches

Opposite Dino, 2007

Graphite and watercolour, 22½ x 30 inches