During an exhibition in San Francisco State University, in 1983. a visitor hinted that I should paint my motifs on nails. I had been thinking about it myself, but never put it into practice.

"One day I walked up to the manicure salon Fancy Fingers in San Francisco and suggested to them that I should paint motifs on their customer's nails. I had them convinced and I began my nail painting."

Such was the beginning for Swedish painter Raino Rydelius, a man renowned for his work in miniature. The 32-year-old artist has been working in miniature stones and other small surfaces for over 1 0 years, and has had over a dozen exhibitions in the United States

His nail painting has since developed and Raino paints nails in several salons around the world when he is out traveling with his exhibitions. These photographs are of work completed at Gias Beauty Salon in Stockholm, where a young woman chose a winter motif for her nail.

Raino always begins his work by painting the base of his motif, and then painting in the details with acrylic colors that are often light and gay. He uses a magnifying glass and by enormous precision with his paint brush manages to get the work to gradually appear. With a steady hand, and great exactness, Raino creates his motif with a great depth and numerous details.

Although Raino has some 20 motifs ready from which to choose, he reports that most often the customer "chooses their own which has a great personal value to them." In addition, "most of the clients only wish to have one nail painted."