PASTEL DOG, COMPLETED

"Trevor"  was a gorgeous pure bred Border Collie that was bred in Australia, then shipped to Canada. Trevor and his master were very close - one of those unique and very special relationships. So, when Trevor died, it was a great loss.


My client contacted me because of one of my pieces that she saw in a friend's home. She asked if I could do this piece of Trevor as a surprise birthday gift for her husband, whose birthday is in August.


Working on "Trevor" has been such a fun process. As I mentioned, he had one of the most glorious coats I have ever seen, and it took a LOT of pastel to give the depth to his coat that it needed.

 I love the expression on Trevor's face. He is so alert and intelligent, ready to "go" at a moment's notice. We have had 4 collies as pets, and I know how they live to please their owners. You can just see that in his face.


So, if you scroll down, you will see the finished work. The client came this morning to pick up the framed piece, and she is thrilled to give it to her husband. I am thrilled to think he will have a special reminder of his relationship with a creature that loves unconditionally, and enriches our lives so greatly.


So, now on to the next commission - another surprise birthday gift. This time, the husband 
contacted me and commissioned a pencil portrait of 

TREVOR
11" x 14" pastel

his wife and daughter. I LOVE the idea of a piece of art as a gift for any special occasion! 

happy client!

NEW WORK IN PASTEL

pastel beginnings

It has been the busiest two and a half weeks that I can remember in a long, long time. My daughter and her family have left us after 2 years of living here. That was a bitter-sweet moment for us all. They have relocated to another city while waiting for visas to work in Spain so that my husband and I could prepare and list our property for sale. Yes - we are going to attempt to sell our acreage in order to move to another beautiful place which has captured our hearts - Vancouver Island. We shall see if there are any buyers for our place, and if not, we will just continue to visit the Island, and be content to stay here which is not a hardship by any stretch of the imagination!


So, we have worked like crazy to clean, paint, and pack/remove all the things we don't need so that the house is perfect and simplified. And, because of the time of year it is, I have planted our vegetable garden and weeded all the flower beds as well. Then our lawnmower died...*sigh*...you get the picture! 


Now that the house is actually on the market, I have been able to begin a commission of a beautiful dog - in pastels. Because the photo here was taken under warm lighting, the background paper looks more toned than it actually is.  But this is the beginning of the process. The person who commissioned the painting was able to leave me a whole photo album of times with this dog, so I have been able to get to know his personality a bit. It always amazes me how intuitive and intelligent dogs can be - and how very attached we become to them. Such wonderful companions! And what a huge gap they leave in our lives when they are gone. We still miss our Meg, whom we lost just a couple of months ago...


I will continue to show you this work as it progresses. With showings of the house, gardening, and getting out for hikes and bike rides, I know the summer will fly by. I can't believe we are almost at the longest day of the year already! We need to get outside and enjoy the summer since it is so short here in Calgary!!! I just want it to stop raining and get warm. Okay - done the rant. Now back to work. :-)

GERMAN SHEPHERD PORTRAIT "Barney"

"Barney"
11" x 14" pastel

"Barney" is completed, and is going to be delivered tomorrow. He won't actually be given as a birthday gift until sometime in August, so I won't know until then how Barney's master will like this portrait. However, I had a wonderful time seeing this dog come to life on the paper, and I have grown quite fond of his character as I saw it in the photo that was sent to me. It is indeed hard when our pets grown old or sick, and pass away!

Yesterday I spent the afternoon with an artist friend of mine who is 82 years old She wanted some help with the eye of a bluebird in one of her paintings. She is so eager to learn and to make beauty with her talent...and she does! I love how art can bring many different people together at so many levels - and there is no age restriction or gap because of age. What a privilege to do this work on a daily basis! 

This week I also delivered 4 of my textured acrylics to a new collector. I was shocked by the art collection this couple has, including a first state print of Rembrandt's etching of the Prodigal Son. I was indeed humbled that my pieces will hang in the same house as many famous and gifted artists. So much beauty from the hands of those artists! ***sigh of contentment***

ALMOST THERE

click on photo to enlarge

He's coming along...will be finished this week!

GERMAN SHEPHERD PROGRESS

My son saw this piece that I am working on, and he commented on how difficult it is to do animals in pastel. He had to do a German Shepherd in pastel as well when he was in art school, and he still remembers how long it took, and how much work it was!


However, that being said, I just love this dog! Here you see the first of many layers to achieve all the different colouring that this dog had. There are times when I step back from working to see what he looks like, and I feel like I could reach out and stroke his fur. I am hoping to get lots more done on him next week...maybe even finish him. That would be fantastic. :-)

PASTEL GERMAN SHEPHERD

I am working on a commission of a beautiful German Shepherd who was the light of his master's eye. His very thoughtful wife has commissioned me to paint the dog in pastels as a surprise birthday gift for her husband. I hope he will be very touched by her loving idea!

What a gorgeous dog he was! He is FULL of color, and loved his toys. :-) I use both Pan Pastels and pastel pencils in my work, and here you see a small array of the colors I am using in creating his likeness.

In this photo (taken at night again - sorry for the bright light shining from above), I have the first few strokes laid in. I will show you  more of Barney next week. (Thank you for giving me permission to show this work in progress Sharon!) If you know this dog, or its owner, please don't give the surprise away. :-)