Portraiture is a very old art form. Before the invention of photography, a painted, sculpted or drawn portrait was the only way to record the appearance of someone – be it human or animal.

Beatrix Potter’s love of drawing animals was the inspiration for her well-known stories and her earliest artist models were her pet rabbits, Peter Piper and Benjamin Bouncer. She created detailed portraits that captured the animal characters, complete with clothing and personalities.

Inspired by Beatrix’s animal art and tales, Year 5 drew and painted their very own animal portraits. Bringing portraiture into the present, they recycled an egg box to sculpt their animal’s head and using an iPad, they researched its appearance and the outfit that their animal character would wear.

Their perfect portraits combine both the old and the new, realism and fantasy, painting and drawing, sincerity and fun, along with a touch of Beatrix Potter’s storybook character charisma!