Paul’s People is a portrait series by Cecile Elstein, created as an acknowledgment of the carers, doctors, and visitors who supported her son Paul during his illness. After developing significant symptoms of MS, Paul required 24-hour care. Cecile drew and painted those who cared for him and brought light into his life. “As a response we got from people,” she said, “I wanted to acknowledge them - as human beings of the greater order are those who look after others.”

Subjects in the series include Paul’s doctors - Lynn Norbury, Bill Temkin, and Chris Martin; visitors such as Sita Williams and Sheila Hunter; and carers like Sybil McKearn. Attendants included Rodney Price, who helped with DIY, and Dorothy Cunningham, the housekeeper, who sat for eight portraits. “Each one took two hours,” Cecile recalled. “There was a set two hours they had to sit for me.”

The portrait of Dorothy, together with others in the series created in coloured pastel and pencil, forms a collective tribute to the people who cared for her son.