Better known for his creativity on the screen, Welsh actor Anthony Hopkins has extended his artistic talent to the canvas, unveiling 50 acrylic and ink paintings in London this week.
Jonathan Poole, exhibition organizer, said the Oscar-winning actor was encouraged to pursue his talent by his third wife, Stella Arroyave, and paints every day in a studio at his Malibu home.
"His wife, Stella, saw some of his drawings on his scripts and then pointed out to him that these are rather good and why don't you take it up, obviously not professionally but properly and he did. And therefore he is in full force now, painting away," Poole told Reuters Television.
A limited edition print of a painting inspired by his wife is on display and can be bought for $1,802 with the actual canvas hanging in Hopkins' home.
Bold and colorful in style, many of the pieces are portraits with eyes that capture the visitors' attention.
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Hopkins, 72, who won an Oscar for best actor in 1992 for his role as Hannibal Lecter in "The Silence of the Lambs," has been painting since about 2002 and Poole adds he is completely self-taught.
"I think most people have this ability. Whether they use it or not is up to them. He most certainly does, because he is very excited when he's actually painting and I think that actually comes out in his paintings," said Poole.
Poole said Hopkins uses a palette knife rather than the traditional brush in his creations, which are generous in texture and color.
"Bold, vivid and very abstract, especially with his masks. It's very hard to pinpoint just one title, but you can see that the eyes, he is very interested in eyes. In his words: you see the world from your eyes, in your eyes," he said.
This is the first collection of artwork by Hopkins to be shown in Europe although he has had exhibitions in Canada and the United States.
The exhibition was unveiled at London's Gallery 27 on Feb. 16 and will run until Feb. 20 before it is moved to The Dome in Edinburgh in March then onto Wales.