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Priest on visit sketches portrait of Sheikh Zayed

Abu Dhabi - He had come for a service to mark the Feast of Nativity of Saint Mary.

A priest during an official visit to Abu Dhabi church has made mesmerising sketch works of the royals of the UAE. 
Rev Mathews T. George 'Jinu', on his first visit to the UAE, saw four photos of the royals hung on the walls everywhere he went. When he was told about the royals, he drew a portrait of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in just three hours flat.
"From my childhood, whenever I saw a picture or portraits, I would try and draw them on my own," said the priest who comes from Kollam district of Kerala.
Talking about the formation years, the priest said: "I did my schooling from a government school. I was a botany student and that's when I took up drawing seriously. My classmates too used to ask me to draw figures for their botany notebooks."
And he continued his passion even during his years of pastoral practice. "During those days, I did find time to peek into the world of drawing and painting," said the vicar of Kundara Katheestha Orthodox Church. He is thoroughly impressed with the vision Sheikh Zayed had for the UAE. 
"Everyone spoke highly about the royals, especially Sheikh Zayed. His vision for this great country is remarkable. His plans are still getting implemented. Importantly, I had a feeling of drawing a person with utmost love and compassion for others. This is my tribute to the great leader," he said while drawing the portrait at the St. George Orthodox Cathedral Abu Dhabi. 
He had come for a service to mark the Feast of Nativity of Saint Mary, which brought him to Abu Dhabi on a short visit.
"After these sketches, I seem to have more self-confidence and belief now." Even as he makes wonderful pencil drawings, his main focus area is oil paintings. He is concentrating on iconography, work of art of portraits. 
He has sketched Indian icons like Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, Sachin Tendulkar, Mother Teresa, Swami Vivekananda among others. He does mimicry and sings songs too.
He is said to have good support from his church.
"I didn't have any guru but the church offered a lot of support."
ashwani@khaleejtimes.com