Art of the Dog: Dawn Secord: Oconowoc, Wisconsin

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Oconowoc, Wisconsin - Day Four

No rain for the art booth! What a huge relief. Hopefully the weather will continue to cooperate for all those involved - art booth or dog exhibitor.

I showed Drew (Willowbrook Artists Rendition) today in the American Bred Class under Judge Sid Marx. The class was a total of 16 entries with one absence (that I know of). Drew showed his little heart out and made the cut. It was humbling to stand in the ring and watch so many beautiful animals exit.

When all was said and done, Mr. Marx pulled his four placements and then called out for Drew and put him 5th place in line. He then directed the remaining exhibitors to fill in the gap and sent us all around the ring one more time.

While it would have been more than thrilling to leave the ring with a ribbon, making the cut and then being put 5th in line was more than exciting. Thank you to Mr. Marx for giving my young boy a nice nod. I'll put pictures up as soon as I get them off my camera.

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Pastel Painting in Progress - French Bulldog

Here is a painting in progress. The pastel paintings are done very much in the same way an oil painting is done. I start with a base color. Usually I work with a precolored surface. With oil painting I would lay in a foundation color so the white canvas wouldn't show through. So this is the same basis. Since I am right handed I work from left to right unless it is a landscape or still life in which case the entire surface is worked uniformly. With pet portraits, so I don't damage an area that is completed, the surface is worked from left to right. While working an area of the subject I lay in mid tone values first - then work light to dark. With pastels an artist can "fill the tooth" of the surface so it is important not to over work any areas. Once the entire subject is painted I go back and reinforce the lightest lights and darkest darks. My greatest area of interest is the eyes. If the eyes aren't right the entire painting will look odd. If the painting is about a sleeping animal it is important to convey the comfort of the animal.

Oil Painting in Process

The following pictures show an Oil Painting in process. The first images show my beginning sketch. I use a common pencil, ruler and an eraser. Once the beginning sketch is satisfactory the sketch is secured with a layer of black oil paint. When the first layer is dried I apply a base color over the entire canvas. I love working on a burnt sienna foundation. There are paintings where I start just working directly on the white canvas and there is no base layer or foundation. It really depends on the painting. From the base foundation I start layering colors. It is a slow process due to drying time. This is where it really becomes fun. I should really make a recording of my husband saying, "You're done - stop messing with it!" Thanks for taking a peek. This painting is of a cat named Lynxy!