Art of the Dog: Dawn Secord: March 2019

Monday, March 11, 2019

Liz

This is a painting of Liz. She is no longer with us, but definitely she is there in the hearts of those who knew and loved her.

I asked her owner to share a little bit about Liz. Here is what she told me:

    She is the sister to BIS Sh Ch. Quinniver's Old Time Rock N Roll. The best "girlfriend" ever!     I miss her terribly.

It is always a heart tugger for me to paint a dog that is no longer with us.   It is an honor and so very important to give the dog's owner a special painting that will touch their hearts in a personal and tender way.   Having lost dogs myself over the years, it is an unspoken bond I hold with the dog's owner.   The pain can take your breath away and time stands still.   For me, the pain doesn't lesson with time, I simply learn to deal with it.   There are times, years after losing a dog, unexpectedly I break out in tears.    When a person asks me to paint their dog that has passed, it is personal for me.

Thank you Pam for having me paint your special girl.

Sophia

It was so exciting when Sophia's owners asked me to paint her.

I've spent time in and out of the show ring with her and not only is she beautiful physically but her personality is delightful. We'd taken photos of her for the painting a couple times. She is so photogenic that picking a reference photo for the painting was very challenging.

Thank you to Sophia's parents for having me paint her and for our friendship.

http://www.dawnsecord.com/commissioninformation.html

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!