This portrait of Shirley is painted with pure, direct watercolour with no under drawing. This takes supreme confidence painting in this way with no pencil guidance. The sitter appears confident posing as this was one of a number of portraits of her by Knighton-Hammond so she was happy doing so. The artist has used the paper to play a part in the colour scheme for the portrait. A few contour brushstrokes make up Shirley’s upper body and outfit cleverly conveying volume. The head is brilliantly painted and captures the sitter’s inner mood and personality. As always with Knighton-Hammond, there is a feeling of moisture in both eyes and lips. When viewed from a distance one does not realise how much blue has gone into the build up of the portrait. The artist has stressed the anatomical detail with his vigorous brushwork and achieves a carefully balanced composition.