Art of the Dog: Dawn Secord: BISS CH Farpoint Effervescent Gem, CD (Irish Setter)

Thursday, March 24, 2011

BISS CH Farpoint Effervescent Gem, CD (Irish Setter)

Ruby is a remarkable girl. I met her an ISCA National Specialty. Ruby's owner approached me to commission a painting of this beautiful dog as a surprise gift for her parents.

There were a few changes that were needed to be made to the photos that were taken of Ruby. The wind was blowing her hair which I chose to lay down softly. The sun had been in her eyes and she was squinting in the photos. It was necessary to open up her eyes a bit. I had taken some photos in the shade and had reference material of her eyes not squinting. We can never have too many photos. It is amazing how one photo that seemingly is unimportant ultimately provides me with needed reference material! Lastly, in the photos, Ruby was ten years old and due to being spayed her coat had lightened. In the painting, her coat was darkened to a richer mahogany.

Ruby's owners were very pleased with the final painting. When the gift was presented, the recipients called me right away to thank me for the painting. It was a wonderful call and so enjoyable to hear fun stories about Ruby. She is truly a special dog.

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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!