Cardiff Rugby have today unveiled a stunning portrait of the late Peter Thomas CBE.
The former player, chairman and honorary life president of the club sadly passed away in March, following an association with the Blue and Blacks that spanned six decades.
His legacy at Cardiff is unrivalled and he has now been encapsulated in a breathtaking highly detailed and realistic oil painting by critically acclaimed portrait artist Nicholas J Smith.
The painting was commissioned by the club on behalf of Peter’s close friend and Cardiff director Simon Webber. It was unveiled by Peter’s wife Babs, with the Thomas family, new owners Phil Kempe and Neal Griffith from Helford Capital, and other key figures from the club in attendance.
Installed in the Sir Hurbert Johnson Trophy Room, across from a similar portrait of Peter’s former mentor, the painting ensures the Cardiff great has a constant presence in the heart of the club.
Cardiff Rugby chair, Alun Jones, said: “Peter’s contribution to Cardiff is immeasurable and it is safe to say the club would not be here today if it wasn’t for his generosity, passion and leadership.
“We were delighted to rename the South Stand, the Peter Thomas Stand earlier in the year and we are now thrilled to reveal this incredible portrait by Nicholas J Smith.
“The resemblance is absolutely staggering and Nicholas has also managed to capture Peter’s personality perfectly. You really can see that warmth and kindness, and a twinkle in his eye!
“To have this beautiful portrait in the trophy room across from the painting of Peter’s long-standing mentor Hurbert Johnson is a fitting tribute to a great man.”
The portrait had initially been planned to mark Peter’s 80th birthday, which would have been in May, but was completed posthumously.
It is a meticulously detailed oil painting based upon a photo of Peter taken at his beloved Cardiff Arms Park before a league encounter against Edinburgh in 2017.
Over the last 10 years Nicholas has built up a solid reputation as an outstanding draughtsman and one of the UK’s finest working portrait artists. His clients include political figures, military heads, leading academics, clerics and Presidents of some of the UK’s top Societies and Institutions.
His work can be seen in highly prestigious collections in places such as: Edinburgh Castle, Imperial College London, Glasgow University, The UK Law Society,1 Great George Street Westminster, Lloyds Banking Group HQ and St Albans Cathedral amongst others.
Smith said: "It was an honour to be commissioned by Cardiff Rugby to paint the portrait of Peter earlier this year. Sadly, I never got the chance to meet him personally for the sitting, so the portrait was instead completed using photographs supplied by the club.
“Painting a portrait posthumously is always a daunting prospect, especially in this case knowing that Peter was such a huge personality and well-loved character. To help, I was given a good insight into him as a person, his achievements, what he meant to the club and what the club meant to him.
“The particular photo that I used as reference was selected by colleagues as the one which they felt best captured Peter's personality. It was a great original image for me to work from and made my job so much easier, I just hope I was able to do him justice in the final painting."