It is rare when two individual artists are able to work as a team in order to produce a single body of work. Peter and Madeline Powell share this unique creative alliance. Usually, painting is a solo endeavor; yet the Powells have managed to create a seamless blend of their talents in their work.

The Powells' painting process is truly a collaborative process. Soon after the two artists met on Maui in 1976, they began working on one another's artwork. Not long afterwards, this joint exchange developed into a natural way of approaching and completing a painting.

"In our paintings, we capture life's treats and play things from the past and present. We enjoy taking the little things from daily life and giving them the prominence and importance that they once had when we were children. Our paintings invoke the spirit of childhood that has been buried deep within us as a result of our more regimented adult lives."

Peter and Madeline Powell are artists who have wed exacting technical photo-realism to the sensual memories of childhood's most pleasurable activity: eating candy. Their paintings remind of the anticipation we once experienced while our mouths watered at the sight of our favorite candy. Each dramatically oversized image recalls the delight we had in unwrapping a package of Hershey Kisses, Bazooka Bubble Gum, M&Ms, Pez, or lollipops. The Powells have also covered other subjects including Crayola crayons, rubber duckies, and classic cars.

Peter and Madeline choose to create larger than life images of these everyday things with a nostalgic feel. The razor edge detail and vibrant colors are astonishing!

Each painting starts with multiple reference photos of the subject matter (at least two rolls of film). Before the final image is selected, the reference photos are analyzed for composition, balance, and theme with a magnifying loop.

Madeline performs the important job of stretching the canvas, with occasional help from Peter. Both artists are involved with the detailed layout of each painting. Each image is drawn in graphite including the shadows, highlights, reflections, fold, crinkles, and lettering.

Next, the actual process of painting begins with the smooth layering of the base colors. This allows for a flat surface without brush strokes. Then, each color is masked off separately. If there is lettering, it is painted in with a sable brush or an architectural ruling pen. With the base colors and lettering complete, the shadows and reflections are painted and then finally, the highlights.