Audrey and Her Vespa is one of twelve original paintings I created for Italian fashion designer Jennifer Tattanelli’s collection on Worth Avenue in Palm Beach, Florida, inspired by Audrey Hepburn’s breakout role in Roman Holiday.
Roman Holiday, the 1953 classic, made Hepburn an international icon overnight. Playing a sheltered princess who escapes her royal duties to explore Rome, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress opposite Gregory Peck, and the film’s story won an Academy Award of its own. Because the film was shot in black and white, I had to color the scene based entirely on my own interpretation, working in warm reds and oranges against dusty blues and white to capture the exhilaration of Hepburn’s character riding through the city.











