As a pet portrait artist, I am commissioned to create portraits of a wide variety of animals. However, dogs are by far and away my most common subject. So, I thought it was time to do a blog post which is a little round up of some of the dog portraits I have recently completed.
Dog Portraits on Velour Paper
I took the time to create a portrait of my own dog Monty. Creating portraits of Monty was how I got into being a pet portrait artist in the first place and this is my 3rd portrait I have completed of him.
I am a pastel pet portrait artist and up until this point I had been working entirely on pastel mat paper, which is kind of like sand paper.
I had been wanting to try out velour paper, which is textured like velvet (it is quite literally hairy), so I thought what better opportunity than to try it out with a portrait of my dog.
Monty's portrait is absolutely enormous and it really is lovely (if i do say so myself!) I have no end of photos of Monty, photography is one of my hobbies and he is my favourite subject. However, I generally say a photo taken specifically for commissioning a pet portrait is best. I did follow my own advice and had a few photography sessions waiting for the perfect photo. The one I used is when Monty caught sight of a bird in the garden, I think he looks rather regal.
After I started working on velour, in addition to pastelmat, I have since completed 2 dog portraits using it as a surface.
Firstly, was a commission for a birthday gift. This piece was going all the way up to Scotland. I had only 1 photograph to work from, which was the spaniel sat looking slightly away from the camera, with some rather lovely Scottish scenery behind.
With a photo like that, it would be rather a shame to not include some of the background, so I decided to work on velour again; as this would help me in getting a diffused, softer effect for the background. This is primarily a pet portrait and I didn't want it to detract from the dog.
This piece was 12x16 inches in size, which is ideal for a single dog portrait on velour.
I was pleased with how it turned out and its recipient was over the moon with their surprise birthday gift.
I think the whole aesthetic works very well with the gundog breed, it is a genre of pet portrait that I would love to do more of, so if you have a gundog that you would like a portrait of, please do get in touch!!
As we are on the subject of dog portraits on velour, here is my latest piece. This one is one of my favourites, it is using the most lovely photo of all 3 dogs together.
This piece was not the easiest portrait I have ever done, but with patience comes rewards! This dog portrait was 16x20 inches, so is the largest commissioned work I have done to date.
With 3 dogs of varying sizes it was important to create a portrait at the right size to show them all off at their best.
I got this dog portrait framed at my local picture framers, Outframed at Ripley and I do think the frame that was chosen works very well. The colours both compliment the portrait and the decor of the room it is going to hang in.
Dog Portraits on Pastel Mat
As I seem to be writing this post based on the surface they were drawn on.. here is some of the dog portraits I have created on pastelmat.
Firstly is a border collie puppy portrait which was commissioned as a housewarming gift.
I really love this portrait, I think it turned out beautifully. One of the things that helps bring a portrait to life, is a sense of light and this portrait has that. It is important to take photos for your dog portrait in natural lighting, this always produces the best results as opposed to flash photography.
This dog portrait was a 10x10 inch square portrait. Whilst my price list has 3 options all are portrait layout. However, some portraits look better square and this was one of those. Square dog portraits prices are simply a ratio of the size/price of my standard sizes.
Dog Portraits I am Currently Working On
I am currently working on two Italian Spinone portraits. This is Tor, he is around 80% completed. The last 20% or so of work can make a lot of difference in how a dog portrait looks.
Italian Spinones' come in a few really lovely colours and have a wirey coat. They also have very expressive eyes and large noses. His owners were keen for me to get those features just right in his portrait.
Both Tor and his sisters dog portraits will be the same size and have the same background and I will be taking them to the picture framers to get matching frames once they are finished.
I hope you have enjoyed reading a bit about the dog portraits I have done and am currently working on. If you are a dog owner and would like to commission your own dog portrait, please do get in touch.