I’ve been buried in pet portrait commissions all of November with absolutely no time to blog. Tonight, I’m taking a moment to post a portrait from way back in May of this year, and I’ll have more to say about my busy November once I finalize my commissions. The thing I love most about painting pet portraits is when I can successfully convey the personality of the pet. It depends a lot on the photos …
This is Scout, one of my first commissions. Painted with just enough detail to activate your brain!
“Keep moving, Pal.” This portrait commission was a memorial for a beloved family pet, Seamus. Apparently, Seamus was quite the character and loved going for rides in the car and growling at people who passed by the vehicle – in a “keep moving – nothing to see here” kind of way. This hobby (or habit) was so amusing to the family that one of them commissioned me to memorialize it in a second portrait. The …
Ripley and Vasquez are The Kid’s two cats. I did a painting of them a couple years ago.
This is Otto, the last of the three German Shepherd portraits I’ve done for the Hughes family.
A few years after I painted Junior, the next Hughes Brother came along: Murphy. A swell looking fellow, he had lighter coloring than your typical German Shepherd, and I accentuated that in the portrait. I think it’s a fair observation that German Shepherds need proper training to be their best at protecting their pack and accepting non-threatening strangers. In a neighborhood setting, you don’t want a dog that is aggressive towards everyone they see. So …
We have friends (hard to believe, I know, but it’s mostly The Missus’ fault – she’s too friendly), and among those friends are the Hughes family. Over the course of ten years, they have commissioned me to paint each of their three German Shepherds that have been part of their clan. This is the first, Junior. He had long ears, which I at first thought was a trick of the photos they gave me, but …
I love repeat customers! This portrait is of Ginger, who belonged to the same owners as Bo. In this portrait, I really think I nailed the golden color of her fur. For some reason, I’ve struggled creating blonde and gold fur on these digital paintings. But this was the first where I felt confident all the way through without having to paint over weak areas. I think part of the recipe for success is not …
Bo was a singularly happy Bernese Mountain Dog. Well, that’s not entirely correct. Every Berner I’ve known has been, without exception, a super happy camper, so it’s hard to say “this one is the happiest”. And though I never met Bo in person, the photos supplied for this memorial portrait certainly gave the impression of a very happy dog. Possibly it’s the breed, or, more likely, the loving pet parents. Normally, I try to focus …
I’ve been spending a lot of time working on my graphite drawing skills. I’m still not quite where I want to be, but each drawing makes me just a little better… and a little wiser. I’m trying to be more bold with my edges. The drawings I see from other artists who give tonal shapes sharper edges always look so much better than murky fades. Attempting sharp edges doesn’t always work for me in the …
