I recently received a set of photographs of a beautiful 5 year old girl whose father, Bill Gekas, is a very talented Austalian photographer.  Mr. Gekas created a series of photographs of his daughter dressed in the clothing and settings of Renaissance Dutch, Flemish, and Italian masters.  I was so fascinated by the concept, the beauty of the child, and the quality of the photographs that I asked Mr. Gekas for his permission to use them to create a series of oil portraits.  Girl with a Straw Hat is the first in the series.  The purpose for creating these portraits is to practice and perfect my skills as a portrait artist and to further develop my ability to paint from photographs.  They will not be commercialized.  They may be shown but not sold.  I hope the viewer enjoys them as much as I have.