Charming Chuy

This is smilin' Chuy. Like most little dogs, he makes up for a lack of physical stature by means of a massive personality.

I love this portrait! Let me tell you why.

First off, you can't look at Smilin' Chuy without smiling back. I think I captured his happy nature with this portrait.

Secondly, in terms of technique, I love the sense of depth I created by carefully placing dark areas next to lighter areas. Many times when painting shapes, the tendency is to attempt to capture the full spectrum of tones from light to dark. That's a good general plan for most paintings, but it can sometimes leave the shape looking uninteresting. I was able to create a compelling center of interest here by putting some of the darkest darks next to the lightest lights. Doing so establishes the highest area of contrast, making it the first place the viewer looks.

Third, I love the illusion of sharpness of the painting. If you look close, most of the shapes are not all that sharp, but the overall effect is of a very crisp image, and you can see individual brush strokes which fade away. I've included just enough sharp edges to create the impression of a tightly focused image, but retained the looseness that I like in a painting.

Finally, adding a brightly colored background added to the happy tone of this portrait.

Here's the full portrait. I hope you love it as much as I loved painting it.

Smilin' Chuy (11x14, digital)