Realistic Registered German Shepherd Dog (Nickel Basin Kennels) Pet Portrait Pastel Painting

I haven't been updating my art blog for a while so figured during this slowed economic/covid pandemic period would be good time to resume.
This German Sepherd portrait was started a while back and took many tedious hours to complete. The multiple layering of fur texture, color and "ticking" was a long process and I had to use over a dozen different hues to create Gala's lucious coat.
Gala is a breeding bitch owned by Nickel Basin Registered Kennels and has recently had a litter of beautiful pups. I love her registered name "Lady Gaga Topolovnicka", which suits her well.

I decided to show the work in progress stages of this painting below the main pose. I hope you enjoy seeing the process. 

You can also follow my work on my FB page at https://www.facebook.com/AnimalArtistryPortraits/
 

Lady Gaga Topolovnicka aka "Gala"

11"x14"

soft pastels on archival suede panel

Private Commission

Progression of the german shepherd dog painting (work in progress):

Tortoiseshell Cat Custom Pet Portrait in pastels

This long haired cat has a beautiful tortoiseshell coat which was very fun to draw. Aptly named "Two-Face", it's easy to see why.
This is one of two portraits I am creating for a client. 

 

"Two Face" 

Long-haired tortoiseshell cat

11x14

pastels

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Time-lapse Progression Video of Springer Spaniel Painting

I put together a video of the progress of the springer spaniel dog portrait commission that was painted last year. The painting commemorated the life of "Rex", who spent most of his life bringing joy and comfort to the sick, destitute and lonely. He was often referred to as the life and soul of Magical Paws, Sudbury, Ontario. Hope you enjoy watching the process and don't forget to turn up the volume!

Calico Tabby cat portrait commission: a painting in pastel

I am delighted to be able to share a portrait of this lovely cat! I could not post before because it was to be given as a birthday/Christmas gift to the recipient. I will be adding work in progress shots of this piece when I have more time.

"Bauer"

5"x7"

original pastel painting

Commission

View more of my work at www.colettetheriault.com

Flatcoated Retriever Pet Portrait

Here's a bit more work I've been doing on the backdrop for this wonderful garden setting.  The black dog will stand out well against the greenery and interspersed flowers.

By the way, this dog is said to be a cross from a setter/dalmatian/flat coated retriever. Quite the perfect model she is!

The eyes have it...painting the windows to the soul!

Like many portraitists, I usually begin a painting by starting with the eyes. It is most important to get them just right so I won't continue a painting until I am satisfied them. You can see from the image below that I have done the exact opposite in this case.  Since this painting is large for my standards,  I had to work my way down the painting as opposed to working from the eyes outward to prevent smudging of the black pastel. Now wouldn't that be a disaster!  

 

I hope you enjoy following the progress of this wolf painting. Please share if you like!

 

Today's painting update of stalking gray wolf (pastel)

For now I am leaving the ears and moving on to painting the left side of the wolf's head. I will probably go back to touch up the ears again later but they will have to do for now.  I've included an enlarged cropped section of the ears to see the detail of the fur. Too bad my camera could not capture the richness of the colors but that will have to wait until I am ready to do the final scan.

 

 

Note the difference in the shape of the ears from this update to the previous entry.

The Gift of a Dog Portrait- Poodle Maltese Mix Painting in Pastel

I often get requests from clients to keep a portrait commission "secret" because it is intended as a birthday or Christmas gift for a special  someone. I love surprises! After many days or weeks of  secretly sharing updates of the work in progress via email with the client, nothing pleases me more to know that the stunt was pulled off and the recipient had no idea !!

No longer a secret, this next commission I can now share with you. I was told the recipient was very pleasantly surprised and even got emotional.  It warms my heart to hear and read such stories and knowing my painting has touched someone's life in a positive way. I really do have the best job in the world!



"Korky"
8"x10"
pastel
Commission
To view the progression of this portrait visit my website www.colettetheriault.com

Underpainting fur

On this step, I continue to work on the underpainting for the body fur. Many layers of pastel still need to be added to achieve the look of his luscious coat.

 

It will be a while before I can begin painting his beautiful face but first things first! 

 

Pastel Painting of cardinal update

I started working the feathers of the body and wings on this little bird painting today. Much more layering is going to happen until I am satisfied with the results. Thank goodness this paper can accept up to 25 layers of pastel!

 

Golden Retriever Painting ...update on the eyes

I was able to sit in the studio today and work on this Golden's beautiful eyes. There is a bit more tweaking to be done one the eye shape, and so the next update might give the dog a slightly different look.

The image below is cropped to show more of the face in the painting. Click on the image for a larger view.



Golden Retriever Painting in progress

A slight retouch is in order...

OOPS!! Seems as I was drawing in the barbed wire I made it too large in relation to the bird so now a touch up is in order. Tomorrow, I will continue to work on the bark of the trunk and will have to redraw the bird slightly larger.
It's probably better that way anyways because it will be easier to add the details on a larger bird.

Progress of bird on a wire painting

There was quite a bit of blending and layering happening in the background this afternoon. I wanted to achieve a glowing effect using warm colors so that the brown sparrow would stand out against the lighter backdrop.

 I have not added the fencepost wire at this stage and so the bird looks like it is floating but that will change in the next update.

 

I am using pastel on light sage colored suede for this piece.

 

Wire Haired Jack Russell Terrier Painting in Pastel

This dog portrait is pending client approval but while I wait, I just had to post the finished portrait. I have never seen a Jack Russell with erect ears and so I did not recognize the breed on the client photographs right away . The scruffy appearance of her wiry fur also added to the challenge.

Cassidy is portrayed her in her older years where her facial markings have pretty much faded to the point where they are no longer visible. I am always amazed at how different a dog's coat and markings can appear as they move up in age.

"Cassidy"
Wire Haired Jack Russell Terrier
5"x7"
pastel
Commission

Terrier dog portrait commission

I thought it might be fun (and challenging) to guess this dog's breed. She is purebred but the erect ear is considered a conformation fault by the AKC (the breed standard is for the ears to be folded forward). Nonetheless, this dog has such a sweet expression that I could not resist using this pose for her portrait.

Gray Tree Frog Painting in Pastel

Alas, I was able to finish the frog painting and I feel satisfied enough to call it done! I have to admit that everything about this piece drove me to edge and back...the green color, the fern leaves, the pattern/texture of the frog's skin. It soon became apparent as the painting progressed that it proved more challenging than I expected.

If there's one thing I learned from this painting, it is to not be afraid to challenge yourself and push your limits; you just might be surprised at the results.

"La Vie en Vert"
5"x7"
pastel
Available for Purchase
contact me
 

Frustrated with painting fern leaves

At some point some artists reach their limit and I am very close to having reached mine. I am referring to the fern leaves that are very predominating in this frog painting. After going back and reworking some of them, I think I might go back and change them again....we call that overworking a painting! Problem is, there is a limit as to the amount of layers of pastel the suede can hold  and I may have reached the saturation point.

One thing is certain, I am not giving up as I have invested too much time and effort in this piece... I will force myself to finish this painting and then just move on to the next.

update of Frog Painting in pastel

 I haven't been able to work much on him today but perhaps tomorrow I should be done the adding the details of this frog.
 Most of you will recognize by now that it is a type of tree frog by the presence of the toe pads. They really do stick to anything, and can even climb on a vertical sheet of glass.

Painting update of the little frog

Little by little the frog in this painting is becoming more apparent amongst the green foliage of the ferns. The cryptic coloration is essential if the frog wants to avoid becoming a hungry predator's next meal! This frog also has the stunning ability to change skin color and pattern to better blend in with his surroundings.

Mystery Frog Painting in Pastel update

Progress is rather slow on this painting due to the detail of the fern leaves. Impatience and boredom made me start working on the frog...it is proving rather difficult due to the small scale of the piece (5"x7"). This means lots of sharpening going on to keep those pastel pencils very sharp and to a fine point.

I am certain many of you will be able to identify this common native frog in the next update.