Art of the Dog: Dawn Secord: Secord Dogs out having Fun

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Secord Dogs out having Fun

Our dogs were busy today. Rich took Drew to learn to work in the field. Drew took to it like a duck takes to water. Rich let Drew loose in the field and Drew immediately took off with his tail up and wagging like crazy. That dog started working the field like he'd done this before which he had not. This was his first time out. The trainers were surprised at Drew's confidence and drive. Rich said he was impressed with how keen Drew's instinct was. They were gone for hours. So, the boys had fun being boys. I bet they both sleep well tonight!

I took Monet out to a conformation show. She showed her little heart out and received lots of compliments from fellow exhibitors. Monet hasn't been shown in a while and boy did she have fun. I could not have asked for anything else from her. I really felt we had some great team work. She picked up another point towards her Grand Championship by going Select. The girls had a fun day too! Monet does not want to be a couch....ooops....."studio potato"!

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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!