Hannahacrylic on canvas, 5 x 5© Xan Blackburn Hannah Banana! I’m told that she was getting told off right before the reference picture was taken, which explains the look in her eye to begin with. Goodness knows what the little trouble-maker had gotten into! I decided to give her a little more relaxed look however, … Read More “Portrait Marathon: Hannah, #15”
Fletcheracrylic on canvas, 5 x 5© Xan Blackburn Fletcher’s mom is like me, I’m afraid: photographically challenged. Alas, those of us suffering this affliction are lucky to avoid getting our thumbs on the lens. After taking another try, we collected what we both agreed we’d better settle for, though it was still a bit vague. … Read More “Portrait Marathon: #13 – Fletcher”
Tip TopAcrylic on Aquabord, 5 x 5© Xan Blackburn Tip Top’s portrait was a special challenge in that I only had one photo to work from, which was small and low-resolution, as well as being fairly dim. Her head is lit from the rear, leaving most of her face in shadow, with just a rim … Read More “Portrait Marathon: #7 – Tip Top!”
Bee Wisemanacrylic on canvas panel, 8 x 10© Xan Blackburn Wow! Miss Bee Wiseman is a fabulous creature! Her mom sent me a bunch of photos, but this smile just could not be denied! Even though she had not only the whole open-mouth challenge going, but the brindle thing as well, I just thought it … Read More “Portrait Marathon: #6 – Bee Wiseman”
Note to future participants: Have your photos ready! Keep an eye on your email if you know your turn is coming up, so I don’t have to skip over you. 😉 Miss StarAcrylic on canvas© Xan Blackburn Star’s portrait took a whole different direction than … any portrait I’ve ever done, I guess! Why is … Read More “Portrait Marathon: #5 Miss Star”
WaliAcrylic on panel (Claybord), 8 x 10© Xan Blackburn Whew! Wali’s portrait, on 8 x 10 panel, took me a little longer than the smaller 5 x 5 canvasses, but I could have been more efficient, I think. Also, working on the very smooth panel requires a different touch, as it shows watery brush strokes … Read More “Portrait Marathon: #4 Wali”
Jack © Xan Blackburn 2012 Greyhound soft sculpture Back in April, I participated in an auction, committing to create a soft sculpture portrait for the highest bidder. Marcy won on May 1st, and she chose Jack, her brindle greyhound, to be the subject of our portrait. Yes: May. So, it’s been a long-term project, you … Read More “Soft Sculpture: Jack!”
Except for the final varnish, Petey’s portrait is done. Let’s look at the final steps. Petey – work in progressacrylic, 8″ x 10″© Xan Blackburn 2012 This step doesn’t look too much further along than the last step I showed you. The work is mostly deepening the shadows, and adding detail to Petey’s features. Time … Read More “Petey is done … What’s next?”
Petey in progress – Detailacrylic on canvas panel, 8 x 10© Xan Blackburn 2012 I swear, I haven’t been completely idle all this time! Hope for Hounds Since the last entry, I’ve been working on the 2012 Hope for Hounds collar and tee-shirt design, which is a yearly fundraiser, and collaborative effort between myself, 2 … Read More “Petey: time for a new color”
Petey: Greyhound portrait in progress Petey got some long-awaited (and well-deserved) attention today. Let’s see where he’s at right now. Petey: work in progressAcrylic, 8″ x 10″© Xan Blackburn 2012 I know I’ve said this before, but I really enjoy this phase. There’s a dreamy quality to it, the suggestion of things not quite pinned … Read More “Petey: that watery phase”
