Art of the Dog: Dawn Secord: Portrait of Christina

Sunday, November 27, 2022

Portrait of Christina - Pastel Painting by Dawn Secord

This is a painting created earlier this year which was a gift from a husband to his wife. The painting was a surprise, so I had to hide the finished painting until the time the gift was presented.

When contacted by someone to commission a painting I always ask to see any photos to be used in order to evaluate whether or not the photos are good reference material for a painting. Sometimes furnished photos are fabulous, sometimes they are not (and when "not" we discuss obtaining additional reference material). To my delight, the reference photo was fabulous. The lighting was great, the pose was great and the turn of Christina's head in the photo was ideal. The reference photo had the subject sitting in her car. The background would be changed to enhance the painting. Other than that small change, I had what was needed.

The painting was done in soft pastel on board and measures 20" x 24". I asked Jim (the husband) to share a little bit about the painting for viewers of my work. Here is what he shared:

Dawn Secord’s painting is created from a selfie photo taken by my daughter, of herself and her mother (Christina). I am so enamored with Dawn’s painting of Christina. It is such a beautiful painting depicting Christina’s wonderful dual expression, being a proud mother spending fun time with her daughter and also being a mature, confident, loving woman, happily showing her emotions with her eyes and smile.

Below is the reference photo for the painting:

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