Artist Mary Jane Ansell used oil on an aluminum panel to portray Haji-Ioannou after a short sitting with extensive photographic preparation. This portrait was commissioned by the gallery’s trustees in 2015 in recognition of his contribution to British business and entrepreneurship.

The portrait is a close-cropped half-length portrait, depicting the sitter at a desk on which he rests his hands. He looks directly at the viewer. The artist worked up three versions of the portrait; a head and shoulders, a simple bust-length composition and NPG 6995.

The uncompromising composition is balanced by Ansell’s painting technique and the colouring, which is built up from a monochrome drawing through layers of glazes.