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 – 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)”
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!”
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”
Katie8″ x 10″, Acrylic on Aquabord© Xan Blackburn 2014 The differences between this and the previous stage may seem small, but they are the difference between not-done and done. Or thinking I’m done. I thought I was done last night, but apparently, that was not the case, as I saw some things I wanted to … Read More “Greyhound Katie’s Portrait: Done”
Katie – work in progressacrylic on Aquabord panel© Xan Blackburn Some good work on this, today. Building up more layers of color in the background, approaching the values (light/dark) I want around the portrait in general, and pretty close to done in some areas. I had the idea today to make the shadows warm, and … Read More “More Katie …”
Katie – work in progress, detailgraphite on Aquabord panelcopyright Xan Blackburn 2013 Now, here’s a challenge. Katie the greyhound was a lovely girl, much loved by her humans. Okay, that’s not unusual for my clients and subjects. Katie was mostly white, which presents the challenges of subtlety in shading, particularly where there is no strong … Read More “Katie the Greyhound, Portrait”
Truman11″ x 14″, Acrylic on Canvascopyright 2014 Xan Blackburn Truman … I loved this big boy. He was my first big greyhound crush who was not my own dog. I rarely get to meet the subjects of my artwork, but Truman and his family are friends I’ve visited with all up and down the west … Read More “Truman”
ShawnAcrylic on canvas, 9″ x 12″© Xan Blackburn 2013 Well, there you go. I swear I took some progress pics along the way, but the changes were so subtle that it was hard to see, once I got going with the colors. So, yeah. That’s that. Done. Oh, but I promised you a love story … Read More “Shawn’s Portrait: Love story”
