Joe and Jen's Riley

This portrait is my second Riley for 2017.

She is a mini Aussie and cute to boot. I work with Joe and Jen at GEICO. Joe commissioned me to do a portrait of Riley for Jen's birthday. We had been talking about it for a couple months and he loved my work before the big article was released. I appreciate the confidence and the support from the awesome people I work with.

The piece is an 16x20 Oil Pastel portrait. 

Sketched out and ready to go. I like to give sneak peeks to my Instagram followers. 

The far right was used for a post. Blue tone due to lighting. 

 

When the oil color is applied the dogs tend to look a little crazy and rough. The pencil work is what brings out the definition. I did have the struggle of black transfer with such a light background and amount of white fur on the body. 

Edit zones are done through my phone's Photo Editor app. I circled and lined the areas that I need to work on more and you can see the improvements to the right. 

"Riley" 16x20 finished oil pastel portrait. 

 I love a good negative space and split profile detail shot, don't you? Ha ha! I love it.

 All those little hairs and whiskers in the detail shot.

 Detail shot with body.

Detail shot of the color tags and negative space under the body.

Miss Riley with her portrait, she is a little more furry than the picture today but a fresh groom with the bandanna is her "Sunday best" She is adorable! Sweet girl. Joe and Jen were so happy with their portrait. Joe couldn't wait till Jen's birthday to give it to her and she personally found me to tell me how much she loved it after. These subject next to art pictures make my day! 

Gatti

The portrait on my drawing table for the month of August was of a German Shephard named Gatti.

A coworker, Jesse (the only other Jesse in Buffalo Underwriting), bought a portrait for his wife's birthday. Her name is Jessica. Confused yet? We got enough Jess's to go around here. Her birthday is September 11th so I had this portrait done by September 4th.

The couple had already gotten a portrait done of their other shepherd, DeeDee. The background was green so I was asked for a green background for Gatti's portrait as well. They are going to be hung side by side.

I loved how expressive Gatti's left eyebrow is! He leans on the couch there looking like he knows he is the cool dude. This was the reference pictures for the portrait. I love how his fur "fans" out-it gave me a texture playground. I love German Shepherd ears too. They are huge and awesome! 

   

DeeDee and Gatti are so sweet, aren't they? 

Gatti's portrait is a 16x20 oil pastel and color pencil piece. I sketched and laid base color down with oil pastel first. Then went in the color pencil to refine edges and details. I now always do the eyes first. Mom was right, it is creepy to leave them undone! 

 You can really see the difference between the base color to when the pencil starts to define the dog's features. Look inside the white lined ovals here. I use a variety of colors for shading. Purple and Indigo are my favorite. I use a white, light grey, lemon yellow, and pink pencil to "smooth" or "blend' highlights.

I wanted the "scruff" and shoulder fur to look touchable. I refined that area further and entered into the "stare and tweak" stage. During this stage I take pictures and take a step back to assess spots that need improvement. Being able to draw on the app make it easy to stay on track. 

 

I added contrasting lines (cranberry color) in the green background to help differentiate the foreground. I left him leaning on as if on a grassy nest you would find deer in. I can't tell you how many times I have watched dogs circle and lay in grass to sunbathe or nap.

 The finished portrait of "Gatti"

Up close and personal detail shot. 

Side by side comparison. Illustration allows freedom in capturing the essence of the subject. In this case his attitude and relaxed posture. 

The portraits now hang side by side in their home. 

Gatti approves. I love these photos from my customers. They make what I do extra special. 

As of 10/3/17 I finished my September portrait and will be starting my October this week. I get to do some ink soon! Thank you for following and supporting my artistic adventures. Stay tuned!