“Cash”8” x 10″acrylic on canvas panel© Xan Blackburn Chris’ greyhound, Cash, at age 10, is on her second life! That’s pretty good for a spooky grey, I’d say! She had a bad reaction to routine shots, actually died, but was brought back to life – a modern-day miracle! And, a gorgeous, blue-brindle gal, to boot. … Read More “#4: Cash’s Portrait”
I’m pretty sure Red’s portrait is done. I’ll sleep on it (not literally – that would not be comfortable at all!) Since it’s almost 9:30 at night, and tomorrow is Chris’ greyhound, Cash’s turn at the Marathon, I’ll just give you a gallery of progress pictures to look at.
Stellaacrylic on Aquabord8″ x 10″© Xan Blackburn I think I’m done with Stella. I hope Lynn agrees! As it’s Memorial Day weekend Saturday, my husband and dogs are all wanting dinner, and I’m rather hungry myself, I’ll just show you some progress pics to show you how I got to this point. Enjoy! Stella’s reference … Read More “PM #2: Stella – done!”
Stella – work in progress, stage 3acrylic on Aquabord8″ x 10″© Xan Blackburn Stella, the sleeping beauty! Okay, she’s not sleeping in this portrait, but her owner tells me that she sleeps a lot, and sent me several photos of her in that state. Sounds like a greyhound to me! (Contrary to popular belief, greyhounds … Read More “Stella, the Sleeping Beauty”
Luki acrylic on panel, 8″ x 10″ © Xan Blackburn Delicate Luki! I really enjoyed building up these hot and cool layers to create this pup’s portrait. It feels like that may capture her personality, in a way, maybe echoing her own internal contrasts. I only took a couple pictures besides the final scan … Read More “PM – Luki’s portrait complete”
Luki – work in progress 8″ x 10″, acrylic and conte crayon on panel © Xan Blackburn I’m pleased with this stage, though I had hoped to be a bit further along by quitting time tonight. Well, life, in all it’s variability, will make hash of the best of plans, eh? Here’s a quick … Read More “PM – Luki (greyhound portrait)”
Wow. Well, once I got rolling, this just went like a flash! Isn’t it funny, ha ha, that the painting part of this portrait actually went quickly, but all the hair-pulling, sketching, sighing and laying in bed at night imagining the painting took days! I should be used to that, but there ya go. I … Read More “Surprising Sadie, Done”
Roheen’s portrait is the fourth and final digital portrait in a series. Her wild fur was the biggest challenge for me, and took several tries to get the right approach. I tend to be finicky, and she was turning out looking too groomed. Challenging photo references are often part of my job (for some great … Read More “Roheen, Irish Wolfhound, Done!”
MomaDigital painting (Artrage Pro)© Xan Blackburn Wow. Well, I’m pretty happy with that, though it did take a lot of hours to get it there. This detail shows a little bit more how much detail I squeezed into this 5 x 7 painting: Moma (detail)Digital painting (Artrage Pro)© Xan Blackburn Yes, those are all individual … Read More “Moma – Another Digital Portrait Painting”
BudDigital painting (Artrage 4)5″ x 7″ @300dpi© Xan Blackburn 2014 My series of paintings of Ellen’s dogs continues with handsome Bud. I loved his gentle, relaxed smile, his soft hair and wonderful markings, but who could resist those bluuuuuuue eyes! Working on paintings in a digital way allows a lot of freedom to experiment without committing … Read More “Bud – Digital Pet Portrait, and my Other Job”