Pete & Brigie
2026
Acrylic on Canvas
1000mm x 1000mm
Pete and Brigie was painted as a surprise wedding gift for one of Tervo’s closest friends. The work celebrates a couple whose connection feels both deeply affectionate and completely natural, capturing a moment just after Pete’s proposal to Brigid. It is a portrait of joy, intimacy and emotional immediacy, built around the challenge of translating love itself into paint.
The work uses Tervo’s signature “three colour zones of the face” technique, in which the upper third is painted in yellow, the middle third in pink and the lower third in green. This approach shifts the focus away from literal colour matching and toward tonal value, allowing the portrait to remain expressive, colourful and emotionally charged. In this context, the technique helps carry the warmth, optimism and heightened feeling of the moment.
Painted over a vivid yellow underpainting that remains largely exposed, the piece gains added depth and brightness. The glow of that base layer pushes through the typically opaque acrylic surface, giving the work a sense of light and vibrancy. The result is a portrait that aims not only to record a milestone, but to hold onto the excitement and tenderness that made it meaningful.