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Here's the story behind my latest watercolor painting titled John Lennon! I was sitting in the auto repair place two years ago and I happened to notice this guy near by. He was rather different looking and seemed to have this whole 60's vibe going on which caught my interest right away. Since I had my sketching supplies with me I asked permission if I could draw his portrait. He chuckled and asked me why I would want to do that but, his reply was yes. I always thought his question was hard to answer actually. As I sat drawing this guy I thought about how much he looked like a Hippie from days gone by. My mind was caught up in thinking about John Lennon I guess because of this guy's round glasses and hair. He seemed like the perfect model to sit for me to do a portrait of John and it was all by accident. The only thing is I didn't realize it till my sketch was complete that I had a drawing of John. My first thought was to title The Stranger or The Hippie but, it just didn't feel right to call it anything else. I believe my painting has the right title and I'm happy with this watercolor portrait and how it turned out. There's a great story to be told and in my mind I still think about John every now and then. It's not unusual for someone who looks like a famous person to sit in their place and be painted. It's a technique that artists sometime do when painting. At some point in the near future I plan to do more watercolor portraits including one of my cousin Ellen who passed away from cancer some years ago. www.donwhitesel.com