Ann Ranlett's Blog - Animals, Art, Etc.

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-25T14:43:00.000-08:00

Art Auction - Starting Price Half Off

2012-01-17T19:40:00.000-08:00

* * * The auctions have ended with no bids on either item * * *
If you're interested in either piece, please contact me.

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Now's your chance to bid on a couple of my originals with low starting prices. I'm clearing out some inventory in preparation for setting up my studio.

I've started the auction for each item at just under half the original price of $95. The auction runs through 10pm PST on January 21st, 2012.

Bid by leaving a comment below - please bid in increments of $5 and include the name of the work.

Minimum Bid $45 - US bidders only, please. Shipping: $10

BUY NOW OPTION:
You can buy either piece instantly for $80 (you still save $15 off the original price) as long as no bids have been made. Simply write BUY NOW along with the item name in your comment and send a payment of $90 (shipping included) via Paypal using the email address annranlett [at] gmail.com

Winning bidders:
Make your payment of bid + $10 shipping to Paypal using email address annranlett [at] gmail.com.

As a bonus, I'll donate 10% of the final selling price to Auburn Area Animal Rescue Foundation (we got our dog, Arrow from them).
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The first item is a scratchboard drawing of a horse in an English bridle. I used my palomino Quarter Horse mare, Bess as the reference, but I made her a brunette (bay). I created this drawing for use on a horse show poster many years ago.

The specs: Framed to 8" x 10", the drawing measures approximately 5" x 6". The mat is black and the frame is black, matte finish metal.

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The second item is a watercolor on Yupo painting of a pug.

The specs: Framed to 8" x 10", the painting is 4" x 4". The mat is white and the frame is silver, matte finish metal. The image below isn't a photo of the framed, piece, but it shows the proportions.

Catching Up . . .

2012-01-01T12:53:00.000-08:00

Before I go further, I'd like to wish my readers a Happy New Year and extend my gratitude for your support. I wish you all the best for 2012 and hope that the new year brings you peace, happiness and prosperity.

And now down to business . . . I'll admit I'm not updating my blog as often as I'd like, but that's the way it goes sometimes. I'll catch up with today's post - featuring a number of portraits I've finished in the last month or two.

Some of them had to remain secret because they were Christmas gifts. The odds of the recipients seeing this blog are pretty slim, but it's a karma thing - I don't like to reveal a portrait to the public until the gift has been given or the client has approved the final.

Morgan - Golden Retriever, 8" x 9", ink and ink wash on scratchboard
When I first went out to take photos of puppy Morgan, he had been playing in the kiddie pool in the backyard. I took photos of wet puppy Morgan and then his mom and I decided when he matured I'd take more photos. The result is this two-part portrait.

Cohan - Maine Coon, 6" x 7", watercolor on Yupo

Cohan - Version 2, mixed media on Aquabord (ink, watercolor, color pencil)
My client wanted a Petzazz style portrait of Cohan, but her husband preferred my more realistic style, so I did both! I scanned in-progress stages of the realistic portrait; one of these days, I'll make a WIP (work in progress) video of it.

Brutus - English Mastiff, 7.5" x 5", watercolor on Yupo (with some color pencil)
This was a long-distance commission. My client is in New Jersey and this was a Christmas present for her husband. She provided a wonderful reference photo and we communicated via e-mail and one phone call.

Roxie - Tortoiseshell, 2.5" x 3.5", pencil/color pencil

Mouse - Tabby, 2.5" x 3.5", pencil w/color pencil eye & nose
Sadly, Mouse had already passed and the portrait was a Christmas gift for her owner. My client had a limited selection of photos for me to use as reference, but I was able to make it work with one of the photos. There's more detail in the white area of her fur, but my scanner just didn't pick up those light pencil marks.

The portraits of Roxie and Mouse are ACEOs - small format art that always measures 2.5" x 3.5". See more ACEO portraits here.

"Rommel" - New Scratchboard Drawing

2011-12-17T17:52:00.011-08:00

This 5" x 7" drawing of Rommel the German Shepherd pup is on black scratchboard. After I did all the scratch work, I tinted it with water-soluble ink pencils. I mixed the colors with water on a separate surface and then painted them on the scratchboard. I mixed just three colors: pink, tan and dark brown.

See in-progress stages of this drawing in my Facebook Album.

I took this photo (and others) of Rommel at a Schutzhund event a few years ago. He's such a great subject that I've also done 2 miniature (ACEO) pencil drawings of him.

This is not a commissioned portrait, so it's available and currently at the Auburn Old Town Gallery. It's in a black wood frame with an easel back. Please contact me if you're interested in purchasing this drawing.

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Materials Used:
- Ampersand Scratchbord

- X-Acto #11 Blade

- Derwent Inktense Pencils

Dogs Helping Dogs

2011-11-22T13:35:00.000-08:00

As of about 4 months ago, we have a new dog! His name is Arrow (formerly Scout, formerly Bingo) and he's a terrier mix. He doesn't look much like a terrier, but when he was picked up roaming the streets of Auburn CA, he was with two other dogs that were assumed to be his brothers and they really looked like terriers. I'm pretty sure he also has some chihuahua in him, and who knows what else. The three brothers were picked up by Placer County Animal Services and Bingo was transferred to Auburn Area Animal Rescue Foundation (AAARF) where he became Scout. I saw him on their Facebook page and was smitten.

I had some conversations with his foster mom and we determined his personality and temperament would be a good fit for our nearly 10-year-old female Border Collie, Magpie. "Scout" became "Arrow" because of the dog in "The Point", an animated movie I loved as a kid. I have a list of potential names for pets and "Arrow" has been on it for a long time. It's a perfect name for a buddy-type dog and this new guy fits that mold; he's very sociable and loves going places with me. Magpie would much prefer to stay home, play with her tennis ball and associate only with the handful of people she knows well.

When we adopted Arrow, I made a deal with AAARF - I'd pay part of the adoption fee and donate some art for the balance. The art I donated was a new, original painting of an English Springer Spaniel, Charleen. I took the reference photos of the dog at an AAARF event at Fortezza Winery - Charleen belongs to the owner. The painting was put in a silent auction at another AAARF event and the winery owner bid on it and won. It's a full circle kind of thing and the reason I titled this post "Dogs Helping Dogs" - Charleen is a rescue, Arrow is a rescue and we're all working together to help AAARF in their rescue efforts.

"Charleen - Watercolor on Yupo, 4.5" x 5.5"

One of these days, Arrow will be the subject of a painting and of course, when it sells, I'll donate part of the proceeds to AAARF. I'll be forever grateful that they rescued him. He's a very special dog and I'm thrilled that he's ours!

And while I'm on the subject of rescue "Dogs Helping Dogs", I'll give a mention to Yolo County SPCA, who initially took in my little Bichon/Poodle friend Sammy Bourke. I did a portrait of him a while back and had promised Sammy's Kind Friend (owner) that I'd donate part of the sale of that painting to the YCSPCA.

"Sammy - Watercolor, Ink & Color Pencil on Art Board, 4" x 4"

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-26T15:43:00.000-07:00

Woofstock!

2011-08-28T15:43:00.001-07:00

Woofstock is an annual event in Rocklin, CA that's all about dogs. People bring their dogs and there are vendors with dog-related products. Plus music, food, costume contests & Dachshund races too!

It was a much hotter day than it usually is this time of year, but my friend Sandy & I decided to go anyway. We enjoy photographing the array of dogs that show up and I really wanted to take our new dog Arrow on an adventure. Our border collie, Magpie, has never been thrilled with outings - she's shy and gets stressed by crowds & commotion, so she got to stay home with John and enjoy some alone-time without her new "brother". I was pretty sure Arrow would be fine at Woofstock and I'm thrilled that he didn't prove me wrong. He was a trooper and made it through the day with flying colors. I really want him to be a happy traveling buddy, so this was a great first step.

I was a little distracted by Arrow, so I didn't get as many photos (and even fewer good ones) as I usually do at an event, but I have a few to share. I even forgot to get my bag of kettle corn today - I'm bummed about that.

Happy Apollo is looking for his forever home - find out more at Chako.org

See more in my Flickr album, along with some I took at last year's Woofstock.

Help Chako Pit Bull Rescue

2011-08-26T16:11:00.000-07:00

In the last couple of years, I've become a big fan of pit bulls and I've met quite a few through local pit bull groups. They're such characters and their expressive faces are great subjects for art.

Chako Pit Bull Rescue is one of the local animal rescue organizations I support. They work tirelessly to educate about this misunderstood (yet wonderful) breed and to rescue/foster/adopt pit bulls.

As is the case with so many rescues, they operate on a shoestring budget and at the moment, they could really use some help with funding for their annual insurance payment. As you can imagine, insurance for Chako is expensive, and without insurance, they won't be able to continue the terrific work they do.

Any amount will help, so please donate if you can - thank you!

"Percheron Power" - Scratchboard Drawing

2011-08-17T18:05:00.000-07:00

This 5" x 7" drawing on Ampersand's Scratchbord (black scratchboard) is going to the "Art at the Classic" art show at this year's Draft Horse Classic, September 22 - 25 in Grass Valley, CA.

I usually work on white boards, but have recently been inspired by members of the WetCanvas Scratchboard Forum to try some black boards. This is only my fourth black board compared to countless white board drawings. I use a similar technique on a black board - scratching and re-inking to get the smooth transitions I want. I also added a wash of grey (diluted India ink) over everything except the chrome when I was finished with the scratching.

I took the reference at a Draft Horse Classic a few years ago. This is the greyscale version (not much different from the color version, with the exception of some red on the mane decorations).

I opted not to draw a couple of things from the photo as a matter of simplicity and design: the white ribbons hanging down from the mane and the one piece of bridle pulling upward on the horse's mouth. I looked at many photos of tacked-up draft horses and discovered that most every horse had a different tack configuration, so I figured it was ok to get rid of that one bridle component. I also shortened the length of leather on the chinstrap.

Following are various phases of the drawing with a few details thrown in.

This stage shows the white transfer lines and the initial scratching on the horse's head.

This stage shows scratching on the mane, some of the chrome and more work on the horse's head.

This stage and the details show most of the scratching finished.

These are details of the final drawing.

Fun With Photoshop

2011-07-18T10:56:00.000-07:00

I've just completed the prototype for a series of dog photos I'm putting together for a show in April 2012. I know that's a ways off, but I was anxious to see if my plan would work, so I had to get at least one of these finished. I'm happy to report that it did work as planned, so I can proceed with this method. This also gives me plenty of time to get all the pieces done without the usual last-minute rush. Oh, I'm sure there will be a bit of a last-minute rush, but I hope it will be a little less crazy than usual!

I wanted to create pieces that aren't as time-intensive as my typical work. This serves a couple of purposes: 1) I can get more done in less time. 2) The finished pieces can be lower priced. This is important because I'm going to donate part of the proceeds from these works to two local animal rescue organizations (Chako Pit Bull Rescue and A New Hope Animal Foundation). I'm happy to help by donating to these terrific organizations, but sadly, I'm not independently wealthy, so I also need to generate income. Coming up with art that allows me to donate a percentage of the sale and also make a reasonable return on my time is key. I got the idea for this particular process after seeing Nathan Feldman's work at a recent group art show in Sacramento CA.

My art show will include 15 - 20 of these photos along with a few drawings and paintings that I'll create using a couple of the same photos as reference. This guy will also be a scratchboard drawing.

Below is a run-down of how I created this piece. I regularly use Photoshop and Photoshop Lightroom for color-correcting scans of my art, creating graphics and editing photos, but this is the first time I've really put Photoshop to the test to produce an item like this for sale. I could have just framed photos for the show, but I wanted to try something different.

I took the photo last year at A New Hope - they rescued a female pit bull and seven puppies. I have lots of photos of these adorable 10-week-old pups, so there will be a few of them in the art show. See more of the pups in my Flickr album.

Photo cropped to a 6" x 6" square

The photo after sharpening a bit and adjusting the hue & saturation

Levels adjusted to get more contrast

The first photo with posterized edges

The posterized version was too dark in the face (which didn't show up until I printed it and it was pretty much a black blob), so I isolated the face of the "red version" and then posterized that

The layers of the face and the posterized version of the whole puppy are partially transparent and overlaid on top of the final "red version" to create the final image

I printed the final version on a glossy photo paper and mounted it to a 6" x 6" Ampersand Gessobord (an archival 1/8" thick panel).

Then I took my Dremel and rounded the corners of the board and hit the edges in some spots. I painted the edges and sides with India ink, putting some of it on the edges of the photo itself.

I sprayed that with Golden archival varnish and when it was dry, I brushed an acrylic gloss medium over the top, twice, letting it dry between coats and brushing in different directions. That left subtle brush marks which add a nice it of texture.

So there you have it! The show will be in Auburn, CA. If you'd like an invitation, please sign up for my e-newsletter. I'll include details in a future issue as the show date approaches.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-29T11:28:00.000-07:00

A Big, Shaggy Dog

2011-06-22T22:15:00.000-07:00

Brogan is an Irish Wolfhound and he's huge! Irish Wolfhounds are the tallest breed of dog. He may be big, but he's an easy-going sweetheart and handsome too. I've posted in-progress scans of this portrait previously, and now it's finished. Both dogs are Brogan - the upper right is him when he was younger with a lighter coat and the lower left is him after he'd matured and his coat became more grey.

"Brogan" - 7" x 9" on 9" x 12" Aquabord. Ink, Watercolor & Color Pencil

This painting is on Ampersand's Aquabord, a textured, clay-coated board. I like to use it for full-color realistic portraits like this one. The surface takes watercolor well and I can also scratch into it. It's much harder to scratch than the Claybord I use for other drawings, so that can be a bit challenging, but it works. It's also a pain to scan, because the texture (many bumps) is picked up by my scanner, so I have to do a lot of cleanup on the background of the scan.

Here are a couple of details of the portrait:

And an animation:

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Materials used:
Ampersand Aquabord
India Ink
Technical Pen
Daniel Smith Watercolors
Prismacolor Colored Pencils
X-Acto Knife with #16 Blade

It's All an Illusion

2011-06-03T19:27:00.000-07:00

Some time ago, while teaching a scratchboard class, I realized that "art is an illusion". I'm certain that this is something I have always known at a subconscious level, but the actual words came to me during that class. It just clicked that we were not drawing dogs, cats, flowers or whatever, but we were making marks on a board that represented these subjects.

My latest drawing of Arabian mare Tani Tabriz ("Breezy") is a good example of this concept. It's not a real horse, it's not a photo, it's pencil marks and shading arranged to look like a horse. Granted, it takes a level of skill and understanding of the process to know where to put the marks and how to apply them. It also requires a knowledge of the subject (an awareness of the physical structure) to understand how the light and dark areas work together to accurately create the illusion of shape and depth.

"Tani Tabriz", 7" x 7", Graphite Pencil on Stonehenge Paper

When I start a drawing or painting, I take the reference photo, scale it to the size of the finished piece and transfer the basic outlines & shapes to my paper or board. Some might say "that's cheating", but I see it as a shortcut that saves me time so I can get to the "meat" of the drawing or painting. I won't launch into the full discussion of that here (as I do when I teach classes), but what I find interesting about art is that I could give that transferred image to 10 different artists and there would be 10 different results. Each artist has their own way of interpreting what they see and their own method of recreating it. Each artist has to make judgment calls on what to include or leave out in order to get the effect they want.

Look at the details of Breezy's eye & muzzle regions. Instead of seeing these areas as an eye and nose, see them as a number of shapes/shaded areas. Circles, lines, wedges and arcs of different tones come together to create the illusion of an eye, nostril, cheek, vein, bony ridge, etc.

Well, that's my little discussion of the illusion of art. Feel free to comment with your thoughts.

Below is the reference photo of Breezy (in color & greyscale). If you'd like to see scans of earlier stages of the drawing, click here for a previous blog post.

I converted the color photo to greyscale, increased the contrast and lightened it a bit.

Cat Suites at FieldHaven Feline Rescue

2011-05-25T15:08:00.001-07:00

I should have blogged about this weeks ago . . . but better late than never. I did write about it in my latest e-newsletter, which is why this may look familiar to some of you.

I've been a FieldHaven Feline Rescue supporter since I met Joy Smith, the director and founder, many years ago (I designed their logo too). FieldHaven now has a brand new, wonderful shelter for its feline charges. The shelter officially opened in April 2011.

As construction neared completion, FieldHaven staff came up with the idea to team local artists with shelter sponsors to create custom decorated rooms in the new building. Joy contacted me to see if I'd be interested in decorating one of the rooms and I agreed. Sandy, my good friend and fellow animal fanatic, agreed to help and we tackled this unique project with a mix of trepidation and excitement. I chose one of the four small rooms since I wasn't quite sure what I was getting us into. The small rooms (suites) are intended for cats who don't get along with others, so they're big enough for one cat or perhaps two cats if they know each other.

We designed and painted an oak woodland mural in the suite and I painted portraits of the sponsor's cats in various locations in the scene.

The "Oak Haven Suite"

The "Oak Haven Suite" in Progress

My art work is pretty much all small format, so this was quite an undertaking. While I have no problem thinking big - I'm not exactly a muralist. We ended up with even more on our plate when the neighboring suite's sponsor asked if we'd work on her room as well! A second mural was on the table until Sandy came to the rescue with a great design based on an ornate mirror & pair of candlesticks that had belonged to her grandmother. The "Mad Catter Suite" was born and it's a crazy concoction of wild colors, ornate decorations and even a Cheshire Cat.

The "Mad Catter Suite". The photos are Photoshopped versions of the sponsor's pets, complete with Dollar Store gilded frames. The moulding was salvaged from our bathroom renovation. The lower half is more of a peachy salmon than it looks here.

Seti the Egyptian Mau shares space with the Cheshire Cat

That's me for scale. The room is not much bigger than a closet!

Sandy tapped a wood-working friend to make the neat bunk beds in each room and another friend to make some of the shelves. The long shelf in the Oak Haven Suite was donated by the sponsors. Sandy's husband helped us install some of the components. We certainly appreciate the outside help for this team effort!

See many more photos in my Facebook album (you don't need a Facebook account to view the album).

Work in Progress

2011-05-09T22:03:00.000-07:00

Nothing really new to report, but I've been plugging away on a number of drawings, so I thought I'd post three of them that are in progress. The first two are farther along than last time I posted them on the blog.

This one is a pencil portrait of Breezy, the Arab mare:

Here's an earlier stage of the drawing:

The drawing is approximately 7" x 7" in pencil on Stonehenge paper.

This portrait of Brogan, an Irish Wolfhound, is mixed media (ink, watercolor & eventually, color pencil) on Aquabord. The board is 9" x 12", which makes the image area approx. 8" x 10".

This stage is watercolor, applied fairly loosely to block in the basic areas of color. The darkest areas (black) were drawn with India ink.

Here I've added some more detail with watercolor

Here I've scratched in detail and fur texture with an X-Acto knife (#11 blade). The next step will be to come back in with watercolor applied more carefully than in the first two steps.

The last one is a drawing of a German Shepherd pup on black scratchboard (Ampersand Scratchbord). This is not a commission, just one I'm doing because I want to work on the black scratchboard surface. I haven't done many illustrations on this surface. I've been hanging out in the Scratchboard Forum of WetCanvas lately, and there's some jaw-dropping work on the black boards in that group.

This is a 5" x 7" board. All I've done so far is scratch with an X-Acto knife. Once I have all the scratching completed, I'll come back in with ink as needed for detail.

On a Roll - Another Dog Portrait Finished

2011-04-20T00:30:00.000-07:00

This sweet girl was Cali, the beloved and much-missed terrier mix of Rachele, the owner of Pawsitive Attention Pet Services in Sacramento, CA. I have yet to meet Rachele in person; we "met" through Facebook and she e-mailed a couple of photos of Cali as reference for the portrait. I'll meet her soon enough though, when I deliver the portrait.

I’ll be honest, the photos provided were not the greatest, but since Cali had passed, it was all I had. This factor determined the style of portrait. I wouldn’t have been able to do a really detailed portrait, but one in this style worked out nicely. Here's the reference photo:

And here are two images of the painting in progress:

I had intended her darkest areas to be a darker purple, but a tactical error (when I painted dark orange over the purple) resulted in a rich brown color, which actually worked out well. I have learned over the years that sometimes things just happen and not to fret over it - just work with it. The British phrase “keep calm and carry on” comes to mind in these situations. After I finished with the watercolor, I layered some purple color pencil over the darkest parts and added a very light watercolor wash of orange over most of her nose to warm the purple and to harmonize the colors.

I won't bore you with all the materials used for this portrait. If you're curious, please read the previous post where you'll see two other portraits done in the same style/technique.

Next on my list to finish are the wolfhound (see it in progress here) in mixed media and the horse in pencil from the previous post. I've also started on an ink on scratchboard drawing of a golden retriever.

Portraits: Finished and In-Progress

2011-04-17T13:53:00.000-07:00

Earlier today I delivered two dog portraits to a client - Gus the black lab mix & Buddha the samoyed.

I posted photos of them in the initial stages here. Both portraits are on the watercolor Art Board surface, 4" x 4". I used black Micron pen, watercolor (Dan Smith brand) and Prismacolor colored pencils.

Buddha's portrait is a gift from my client to Buddha's owner, so the photo selection was limited and not ideal since she didn't want to divulge why she wanted some photos of him. The photo that had the best expression was really dark on one side, which is why the portrait is darker on the left. Still, it works and I'm pleased with the way it turned out, and more importantly, so was my client!

Here's the reference photo (taken with a cell phone, I believe), along with a second version that I lightened in Photoshop so I could see some of the detail on the shadowed side.

And here's the reference photo for Gus:

This is another Art Board portrait in progress - I also posted the initial stage of this one in the earlier blog post, but here it is again:

This is Cali, the terrier mix. Here I've added watercolor washes on top of the ink. I'll be adding oranges and golds next. Cali is white, tan and dark brown but I'm tweaking the color palette a bit, as I like to do with this style of portrait.

And speaking of portrait styles, this is a very realistic portrait of Breezy the Arabian mare. There's still quite a bit of work left to do, but I'm really happy with the progress so far. Her mane has been a challenge because it's thick and a bit fuzzy. This drawing is approximately 7" x 7" in pencil on Stonehenge paper.

Dog and Bunny Show

2011-04-11T13:27:00.000-07:00

I have two new non-commissioned drawings to share. Below each image is a link to contact me if you're interested in either drawing.

The first is "Boston Style" an ink on Claybord (scratchboard) drawing of a Boston Terrier.

"Boston Style", 5" x 5", Ink on Ampersand Claybord
This drawing is available for $120 (shipping/sales tax additional). It's unframed, but there's a hanger on the back. Please contact me if you're interested.

This is the reference photo:

And a detail of the portrait:

And here's a WIP (work in progress) video of the steps in creating the drawing:

The second drawing is an ink on Stampbord (scratchboard) painting of a baby cottontail rabbit.

2.5" x 3.5", Mixed Media on Ampersand Stampbord
This drawing has sold, but you can find baby cottontail merchandise (cards, postage, iPad case and more) in my Zazzle shop.

Here's a detail:

I didn't make a WIP video of this one, but I did make an animated GIF:

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Materials used:

For "Boston Style"
Ampersand Claybord
India Ink
Technical Pen
X-Acto Knife with #16 Blade

For Baby Cottontail
Ampersand Stampbord - As best I can tell, Stampbord is exactly the same surface as Claybord, but it comes in small sizes and is marketed to the rubber stamp-using crowd.
India Ink
Technical Pen
Daniel Smith Watercolors
Prismacolor Colored Pencils
X-Acto Knife with #16 Blade

Assorted Cat Portraits

2011-03-30T18:09:00.000-07:00

Playing catch-up here. . .
These are portraits that have been finished for a while. I just hadn't gotten around to posting them until now.

First up is Wonkers. She was a beautiful and tough old girl. She had some chronic health problems but lived much longer than anyone thought she would. Her portrait is in ink/ink wash on scratchboard.

Here's a video of the progress:

I do have the individual scans of her portrait, but I'm blogging from a remote location without access to my main computer (internet's been down at home for a while), so I won't be posting those as I usually do.

"Wonkers, 6" x 6", Ink/Ink Wash/Watercolor (eyes) on Scratchboard"

Next is Mr. Fatty, a Munchkin cat (very short legs & stubby tail). This drawing is an ACEO in pencil, with blue color pencil for accent on his eye and the rug. This portrait was commissioned by Mr. Fatty's "aunt" (an artist friend who goes by the name "Golders") for her sister.

"Mr. Fatty, 2.5" x 3.5", Pencil & Color Pencil"

These are the reference photos in color & greyscale:

Last up is Trooper, who belongs to one of my friends. This is another ACEO drawing in pencil. I used color pencil on her ears & eyes.

"Trooper, 2.5" x 3.5", Pencil & Color Pencil"

My first idea was to do a dramatic crop for the portrait, with one of the photos my friend provided. Like this:

. . . but she really wanted to have both of Trooper's eyes in the portrait. So I used this photo and then cropped it.

So these are the reference photos in color & greyscale. I rotated them slightly to make her eyes level.

Portraits Underway . . .

2011-03-14T13:25:00.001-07:00

Just thought I'd share the early stages of a few dog portraits that I've started.

The first three are 4" x 4" on the Art Board surface (watercolor paper mounted to an archival board). The last one is a larger piece on a 9" x 12" Aquabord.

This is Buddha, a Samoyed - a white and very furry breed. So far, I've used black ink on his nose & eyes, some white and pale blue color pencil around the edges of his fur and watercolor for the background and other colored areas. I put the color pencil on first, to resist the paint at the edges of the dog. Some paint bled in past the pencil on the left side, so I scrubbed/lifted a bit of it off. That side will be in more shadow, so it's not a problem. Since Buddha's fur is all white, I'll tweak the color palette on this painting to be similar to this portrait I did of Bailey. Buddha's portrait will have more "floof" and less curl texture than Bailey's.

Cali, a terrier mix, has more dark colors on her than Buddha, so you see more ink work here. I've used a black Micron pen for the ink. Next, I'll paint the background blue and then Cali. She's brown, tan and white, so I'll paint her in shades of purple and orange with pale purple for the shadows on her white areas.

On Gus, a lab mix, I've done a lot more work with the black ink, since he's a black dog. He's wearing a bandanna which will be teal, with Gus in shades of purple/blue. I haven't decided yet, but I think the background will be a purple-tinged blue.

And lastly, this is Brogan, an Irish Wolfhound. I took reference photos of him when he was younger and then over a year later when he'd matured. My client wants both stages of his life depicted in his portrait. Young Brogan is in the upper right corner. For this portrait, since it will be more detailed and realistic, I'm using the Aquabord, which has a coated surface that allows for scratching, along with my application of ink, watercolor & color pencil. So far, I've used ink for the darkest areas and watercolor for everything else. I use a technical pen filled with India ink for the Aquabord portraits. The next step will be to scratch in detail and texture. I made this video of a German Shepherd portrait done with the same technique.

Australian "Comfort" Dog - New Portrait

2011-02-27T20:43:00.000-08:00

This is Redbone (Red for short), an Australian Cattle Dog that my friend Sandy adopted from an ACD rescue group about nine years ago. He's a handsome boy with a great "head tilt" which I used to my advantage for this portrait. Sandy has had a number of ACDs over the years and they all have exhibited a great love for napping on the couch, hence the term "Australian Comfort Dog". They have plenty of energy when the Frisbee is calling, but after that, rest and relaxation is very important.

"Red" - 4" x4", Mixed Media on Watercolor Art Board

Reference photo for Red's portrait

I scanned the portrait twice while I was working on it. At this stage, I had inked parts of it with black & brown Micron pens, painted the background with watercolor, lightly shaded the background with color pencil, and started with watercolor washes on Red.

Here I've completed most of the watercolor work. I did a little bit more detailing with watercolor and then completed the portrait with color pencil.

This is a detail of the portrait. Notice that I also used just a bit of lavender color pencil on top of the orange as accent. It doesn't show very well, but there's also a bit of orange on his nose.

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Materials used for "Red":
Watercolor Art Board
Micron Pens (black & brown ink)
Daniel Smith Watercolors
Prismacolor Colored Pencils
Krylon UV Resistant Clear Spray

You can find merchandise featuring Red on Zazzle and CafePress.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-16T10:44:00.002-08:00

Yee Haw - I Rode a Steer!

2011-02-11T18:22:00.001-08:00

Why? Because I could! Kimberly, a friend of mine, has been training her two steers for quite some time now. Her business is called "Howdy Moo to You" and they've been in parades and have entertained at parties and schools. Recently I ran into her (and the "Moo Boys") at an event and told her I'd love to ride one of them. The older one, Dozer can be ridden, while the younger one, Jazzy is still in training. So a few days ago, we met out at Traylor Ranch (where easy riding trails abound) and had a great time.

Dozer is an Irish Dexter steer and at 3-years-old is full grown. He's a very nice boy and didn't give us any trouble. He ambled along the trails at Traylor as we took turns riding him. Kimberly worked Jazzy (a longhorn) from the ground with long lines - he's still young and needs some more work before he can be reliably ridden. Jazzy came from Premier Longhorns - a company who specializes in riding steers.

Check out the videos of me aboard Dozer:

We decided that riding a steer is like riding a draft horse with pony legs. The gait is short, but not as choppy as we expected. Dozer only walked though, so I imagine a trot would be a bit rough. It was quite relaxing and slow-paced. Both steers were very calm and nothing seemed to fluster them - unlike horses! A noisy truck/transfer rig pulled into the parking lot just as I was starting to ride Dozer and it didn't phase him; many horses would have been spooked by that. It was also pretty windy - something that can get horses a little hyped up - but the steers couldn't have cared less.

Dozer is a little sluggish in responding to cues (the same ones you'd use on a horse - leg & rein) but I suspect that as he gets more miles under saddle, he'll be snappier. It was certainly a unique opportunity and I'm looking forward to doing it again. My friend Rachel & I are also planning to help Kimberly start riding Jazzy.

Semi-Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-26T13:49:00.000-08:00

You may have noticed that a number of bloggers have "Wordless Wednesday" posts. I felt like posting a little something today, but didn't want to have to explain a process or describe an event. So this is my first Wordless Wednesday post - with just a few words - this time. Be on the lookout for future semi-regular WW posts with no words!

Wordle

2011-01-15T12:10:00.000-08:00

A short post for today. I have other things I need to post (a couple of completed pet portraits and a work in progress video), but they'll take more time than I have right now. So I thought this would be fun to share: I just discovered Wordle - a web site where you can create a nifty word cloud from your own set of words or the words found on a blog or web site with an RSS feed. It's quite customizable, from the "strength" of the words found to the number of words in the cloud to the color scheme.

Here's mine for this blog: