Another commission.

Another commission for a family friend. They really wanted this by a certain date so I put my current project aside and spent a good two days on this one working to get it done on time. Unfortunately, the photograph that was supplied isn't the best but it was the only one the owner had. So, I made apples into oranges. Is that how it goes? This time instead of trying to get the texture on the nose, which I have yet to perfect, I decided to just highlight it with some cross hatching and I think it works. At least until I find the right texture. I also had more fun than I expected getting the crazy hair on this dog. Well here is Pooh, who is a hyper active Bichon Frise that really needed a hair cut.

Original Photograph:


Final Results: VIEW FULL SIZE
Medium: Scratchboard with a water color wash Size: 8x10

Phinney

My first commission measuring 11x14. Phinney is a Springer Spaniel and an adorable one at that. I'm pleased with how this came out. I decided to go with a 'fade' effect for the fur on the bottom instead of finishing the fur to the end of the board. I think it adds a nice artistic touch. I need to start timing how long these are taking me. I believe I worked on Phinney for a few weeks, taking about an hour, hour and a half each day. My next commission I will start to count the hours, out of my own curiosity.

The original photograph:


And the final results: VIEW FULL SIZE
Medium: Scratchboard with a water color wash
Size: 11x14 [Sadly my scanner couldn't scan the full size but it was able to scan the important part; the dog]

Practice- Tino

After an unexpected hiatus I have finally returned to art. I'm very excited because I have a lot of commissions to keep me busy. But, being on hiatus I needed practice before I tackled the hard work. So, here is Tino. The reference [supplied by an online community for cats] caught my eye and it looked like a fun way to get the 'creative spark' going again. I do not do cats often but I certainly would like to try them more often. Not one of my better scratchboards, I think some of the proportions are off but I learned techniques for rendering cats in the future. Now, I think I'll be ready to go tackle those commissions.
Medium: Scratchboard with water color wash
Size: 5x7

Wolf In Progress

I've been doing a ton of scratchboard lately and wanted to get away from it. I decided to go with something that would give me a good amount of freedom and I could really mess around with. I decided to draw a wolf and paint it in acrylic similar to how my Into the Wild illustration was done. I experimented a bit more by adding color to the eye with Prismacolors and outlined the eye in ink.

I have yet to decide a background. I was thinking of perhaps a fantasy type of scene...Any ideas?

Balentine the Bull Dog

I didn't count the total hours but I believe this is the longest I have ever had to work on a scratchboard. Balentine the Bulldog turned out to be a lot more challenging than I first perceived. I'm glad I had the practice with Camelot on short fur rendering or I would not have been sure how to make the short furs on a bulldog look even slightly believable. I'm pleased with the final product but at the same time I feel it's missing something. I think it may be the fact that Balentine is all white and I'm not used to working with so little color. All he needed was pink highlights for his ears and some of the fur. I'll let Balentine sit on the side for a few days and see if I can come up with anything or leave it as is. For now I present Balentine the Bulldog who looks like he has a lot of attitude!

Oh, and for a change of pace I am including a scan of the original photograph I worked from as reference so, you can compare the photograph to the artwork produced, as well as what I chose to change and leave in.

Photograph:

Medium: Scratchboard with water color wash - Size: 8x10

Camelot edited and older piece [Fawn]

After letting Camelot's portrait sit around and received a few critiques I went back and fixed a few things. I reworked the tongue which proved to be more difficult than I first preceived and added a few touch ups to the fur. Here is the final version I will be bringing to the shelter.


I also dug up an older piece I did about a year ago that I finally rescanned for a better quality image to display and have on the computer.
Through the pine trees
Scratchboard with a water color wash

Camelot

My first donation to the Mt. Pleasant Animal Shelter. I'd like everyone to meet Camelot. She is an adorable year old Pit Bull Terrier Mix. Cammie has been at the shelter for awhile and has touched all the hearts she licks. Always welcomes you with a wagging tail and a big grin on her face, Camelot would be a great companion. Here is the beauty queen in her 'artistic debute'.

Medium: Scratchboard with water color wash


I recently purchased new tools specifically for use on scratchboard and Camelot's picture was perfect for trying out these new tools. I found a lot of interesting and new techniques that I can now use in the future. As much as I liked how Camelot came out this was a good learning experience as she was my first attempt at working with a dog with really short fur and getting the fur rendering accurate.