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Kim,
As far as I know it CAN be a hired model, but the painting has to be clearly a portrait. In other words, the painting should not be a figurative with the emphasis on the pictorial aspects mainly.
Sargent did a fanciful painting of one of the Wertheimer daughters in a harem costume, but it is clearly mainly a portrait of her.
His figurative boating scenes are another story, even though the figures are recognizable people, it is still a scene with people in it, and therefore would NOT be eligible.His painting of the writer Henry Louis Stevenson, thoough odd is still a portrait, that effectively and tellingly emphasizes his frail physique.
Many portrait artists, myself included, hire models to start their portfolios and also because the model appeals to them.
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