Terence McKenna
Terence McKenna originally trained at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama but subsequently pursued a career in illustration.
Recent years have been devoted to painting, in particular portraiture, and the exhibition at The Royal Opera Arcade Gallery was the culmination of this effort.
His studio is situated among 15 acres of woodland in Norfolk, England, where he and his partner, Miranda Jaquarello, who he met at drama school, have lived for over twenty years.
Alongside their professional work, he as a painter and she as a theatre practitioner, they maintain and develop the woodland as a conservation project.
Portrait: Ray Winstone
“Since I began taking commissions it has been a pleasant surprise to find that it’s not just the wealthy who value portraits. My clients come from all walks of life and one of the most rewarding parts of the work is the chance to get to know so many different people.
For me, a painting is unique in its power to affect us. We usually know artworks from a screen, often a mobile phone, or in print, but you only have to visit The Doria Pamphilj Gallery in Rome and gaze at Velasquez’s portrait of Innocent X to realise just how little you have experienced beforehand.
I bought the catalogue of the National Gallery’s Sorolla exhibition but it doesn’t begin to reflect the experience of walking among those enormous canvases and, similarly, nothing quite prepares you for the visceral impact of standing in front of a Paula Rego.
An oil painting will last for generations, and that’s not something you can say of many things.”
