Portraits to Comfort, Encourage and Inspire

realistic acrylic portrait children walking in woods

"Picking up the Mantle" 16 x 20, acrylic on canvas, by artist Matt Philleo

"Rebuilding the Broken, 16 x 20, acrylic on canvas, depicting Nehemiah rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem, an illustration by artist Matt Philleo for a book by Russell Stendal, published by Aneko Press, 2018

"Bethel Mural: The Gospel from Genesis to Revelation", by Dave Mattison and Matt Philleo, 2013, panel 2

"Bethel Mural: The Gospel from Genesis to Revelation", by artists Dave Mattison and Matt Philleo, 2013, panel 2, detail

"Victory in Surrender" 16 x 20, acrylic on canvas, by Matt Philleo.

Portraits to Comfort, Encourage and Inspire

Hi, I’m Matt Philleo. Since 1991, I have been creating detailed, realistic pencil drawings and acrylic paintings on commission and exhibition.

My goal is, through beautiful and emotive art, to bring comfort, encouragement, and inspiration, especially to the discouraged and brokenhearted, so they can experience true and lasting peace.

Please contact me if you have any questions and visit my blog posts to see my most current work. If you’d like to be added to my personal and confidential email list, sign up right here.

To learn more about my custom portraits, visit TraditionStudio.com, my official commissioned artwork page

Thanks for visiting!

“Inscribed”

14″ x 17″

Pencil on Paper

UPCOMING SHOWS:

11th Annual Artisans Showcase–Merrill, WI. February 9, 2019 | 12-4:30PM (More info)
Realistic Acrylic Portraits: A Two-Day Worskshop. March 12-13, 10:30AM-3:30PM (More info)

Here’s the Latest From My Blog…

Beautiful Art and a Beautiful Drive

by Matt Philleo | Sep 25, 2015 | Encouraging Thoughts

I have been a part of a local studio tour, the Falling Leaves Art Studio Tour for five years now. The tour is like the classic Sunday afternoon drive, only you get to visit local artists in their studio, see their incredible art, and in between the stops, take in beautiful scenery adorned by the rich fall foliage that we are so blessed with in Northern Wisconsin. In the tour, there is all kinds of art to see–painting, drawing, pottery, jewelry, functional silverware, woodworking, alpaca yarn creations, and other things you wouldn’t normally associate with art. I happen to do painting and drawing. But I hook up with an artist, Ron La Blanc, who does functional and handsome pottery work and colorful landscape paintings as well. In fact, I stay at his home, and take up residence for two days in his garage, which is transformed into my gallery space. It’s a little challenging, because the side of garage I use is actually where he stores his wood to get him through the winter. (Well, he stores enough to get him through about 5 winters!) Over the last few years, I’ve gotten a little better each time at converting a wall of irregular wood into a gallery space. You hammer nails into the logs, pivot the framed artwork against the various pieces, and pray that they don’t fall! Some of the tour goers have said the wood wall makes a unique backdrop. I agree. I really enjoy getting into meaningful conversations with some of the visitors. A couple years ago, a lady looked at one of my paintings, and... read more

How to Paint a Realistic Acrylic Portrait in 5 Steps

by Matt Philleo | Sep 23, 2015 | How to Paint Instruction, My Art in Progress, New Artwork, Tips for Artists

I have been doing commissioned portraits for 24 years, since I was in high school. One of the questions I’m often asked is: “How do you create your art?”

I am going to show you a recent portrait I did, step by step, and my hope is that you may be able to learn a few tips that will help you in your own portrait painting. Although I paint in…

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