Finished Portrait of an English Yellow Lab

This is the finished custom pet portrait of Pudge, an English Yellow Lab. The final painting was 12″ x 12″ in acrylic on an archival hard panel. I’ll be posting the companion portrait of Daisy next. I was fortunate enough to have wonderful photos to work from for both paintings–and I believe that the images helped me to create a painting that gave a good feeling of the different textures in Pudge’s face.

Water dogs like Labrador Retrievers have fur that is slightly spiky–so I use short, sharp brushstrokes when I paint it. And I typically use a 00 or 000 size bush which is very tiny–these brushes don’t last long. They lose the sharpness of their points after just a few paintings. Not like my workhorse brushes which I have had since college, and abuse quite a bit. I’ve always admired those artists who take beautiful care of their brushes–but it just isn’t me. I like the way that a battered brush handles the paint in the early stages, capturing movement. I also do a lot of dry brush scrumbling which means I drag and grind my brushes into the canvas as I layer on slightly dry paint. It’s a great way to catch some subtle texture.

If you are thinking about a custom pet portrait–I’m always happy to discuss your thoughts. So feel free to get in touch through my website at https://www.hopelaneart.com