Artists
Related: About this forumDid this pastel painting over the last few days. Trying to learn how to do pet portraits.
People seem to like getting portraits of their pets so it seems like something useful for me to do.
Thank you to anyone who looks, comments. Always grateful for constructive criticism, always hoping to learn and improve,
Thank you ❤️😍☮️
[url=https://postimg.cc/4mdPGhrH][img][/img][/url]
Tomconroy
(7,611 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Docreed2003
(16,817 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)2naSalit
(86,048 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)niyad
(112,432 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Diamond_Dog
(31,658 posts)Your shadows and lighting, superb!
How did you create all the very fine lines such as in her whiskers? Im not very competent in pastel.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)riverbendviewgal
(4,251 posts)You have talent! Keep on what you are doing.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)FalloutShelter
(11,748 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Sanity Claws
(21,822 posts)You are an artist!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)CrispyQ
(36,225 posts)Almost looks like a photograph it's so life like. Excellent work!
Rebl2
(13,303 posts)my attention too. The eyes are amazing! Wonderful pet portrait!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)KarenS
(4,024 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)sinkingfeeling
(51,275 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Tree-Hugger
(3,364 posts)The light on individual hairs....just
Gorgeous kitty portrait - you are very talented.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)ChazInAz
(2,535 posts)Fur is especially difficult to render, but you got it.
Very good, indeed!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)MontanaMama
(23,238 posts)Really wonderful.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)dixiechiken1
(2,113 posts)I can't believe the amount of detail - the reflection of light in the eyes, the fur that looks soft & touchable, and the whiskers. So lifelike! You are truly talented, Liberal.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)woodsprite
(11,853 posts)I have done paintings (watercolor and oil) and pen/ink drawings, etc. but have never ventured into the pastel medium. Did you use oil or chalk pastels?
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Scrivener7
(50,773 posts)for whom this would be a treasured gift.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Scrivener7
(50,773 posts)What a Christmas gift that would be!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Lonestarblue
(9,878 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Danmel
(4,892 posts)Can I commission your work?
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Of messing up and disappointing someone willing to pay me for my art. But I will contact you when I feel more confident! 😍
CaptainTruth
(6,546 posts)All those little hairs, & the detail in the eye is incredible.
It's beautiful!!!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)cate94
(2,797 posts)And a very sensitive portrait.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)panader0
(25,816 posts)What do you charge for such a portrait?
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)mopinko
(69,805 posts)my sister is a photographer, and if i lived closer, we would do pet portraits. me to wrangle, her to shoot. she gets asked often.
i know a couple people who do pet portraits as a side gig, and it helps pay the bills. and it's happy work.
just one critique, tho. the right eye needs some light.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Portraits do sound like they are something people might like, plus wildlife portraits, I might concentrate on that field for awhile. Thank you again! I hope you do get to do portrait photos with your sister some day! 😍😍😍
mopinko
(69,805 posts)and she doesnt do that much photography since i got her elected in '18.
here's another tip- look at it upside down. make sure your eye goes where you want it to go.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)mopinko
(69,805 posts)it's nice to use my crit chops. art school was a long time ago.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)sheshe2
(83,324 posts)You are incredibly talented.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Klondike Kat
(808 posts)Looks similar to our cat Chuck.
I think the tip of the nose is a bit "off". Seems a bit skewed to me. However, I'm not an artist by any stretch of the imagination so you can take that for what it's worth.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)NJCher
(35,423 posts)is amazing.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)PatSeg
(46,789 posts)You really nailed the eyes!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)3Hotdogs
(12,207 posts)I think the nose may be off center. But Im looking on small screen so I wont put money on it.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)HAB911
(8,811 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)3catwoman3
(23,812 posts)...to reach into the painting and stroke the soft-looking fur.
I do agree with the 2 earlier commenters that something is "off" about the nose.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)3catwoman3
(23,812 posts)The only thing I can paint is walls!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)fierywoman
(7,641 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)wendyb-NC
(3,250 posts)Keep doing art! That's a wonderful idea, doing pet portraits, to give to those who love them. I am impressed by your work. Thank you for sharing it.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Auggie
(31,060 posts)First, it's an awesome effort. Congratulations. Your stroke work captures the fur texture magnificently. Great lighting, design and crop!
Had I commissioned this commercially, I'd ask you to push the saturation of colors a little more, particularly the yellow and green areas, and increase the density of the black areas. Also, the gray area in the lower left is a little too light and draws the attention away from that beautiful feline face. I'm not a pastel expert, but I do know they're pretty unforgiving, so I'd urge you to make changes with a light touch.
Also, the cat's left eye doesn't look quite right to me though I imagine it matches your reference material. The nose looks slightly out of perspective too.
This critique comes from evaluating commercial illustration and photography over four decades. It's not the final word or necessarily correct. But it's what I see.
Looking forward to seeing more of your work. You have an incredible talent. Thanks for sharing.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)More than I can say, it is exactly what I need to help me on my artistic journey! Thank you so so much!
I do struggle with drawing, and that is something I MUST learn to get right, there is no painting without a proper drawing. Sometimes I despair at ever getting better at drawing.
Thank you so so much!
❤️❤️❤️
demigoddess
(6,640 posts)photo. Art!!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)secondwind
(16,903 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Sienna86
(2,147 posts)Let us know if you have contact information.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)pandr32
(11,446 posts)Excellent!!!!!!!!!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)pandr32
(11,446 posts)bif
(22,560 posts)I don't think you have a lot more to learn. You've pretty much mastered it!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Saoirse9
(3,662 posts)I hope you will post a link to order one. I would love to have one of both my dogs.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Ocelot II
(115,270 posts)Pastels are so tricky - all I can do with them is make a smeary mess - and you've done a great job here!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Pepsidog
(6,252 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Traildogbob
(8,571 posts)Just wow. You have a gift. The eye, magical. If that kind of talent was near me, Id pay for my two labs and my daughters 2 dogs and two cats. I would first hire the painter to do the pitty she lost a year ago. Her first and the one that helped her deal with her mom losing cancer battle. That dog gave her love and strength. You can help a lot of people with your gift. Thank you for sharing. Please share more.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Trueblue1968
(17,138 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)samplegirl
(11,415 posts)You can do my cat!
Great Job!!!!!!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)lunatica
(53,410 posts)Its a very successful portrait! I love the reflections in the cats eye. Ive gazed into my cats eyes like that and seen many incredible thing. I think youve captured the cats eyes beautifully and completely. All of it is outstanding! The soft fur and the whiskers and the pink nose make me want to pick the cat up and snuggle! My cat is a tabby just like that one and for a split second I thought your drawing was of him! Its truly lovely to get pulled in like that because it filled me with all the emotions I feel for my cat as soon as I set eyes on it.
This portrait is quite successful. Its perfect in every way. I dont see a thing that could be improved!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)And just knowing a real artists sees value in my work, encourages me to keep painting. You are my sunshine! I wish we lived closer so I could take you to lunch or dinner or something nice! 😍😍😍
japple
(9,773 posts)Thank you for sharing this piece.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Riverman100
(270 posts)Just wow
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Richard D
(8,692 posts)Joinfortmill
(14,236 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Escurumbele
(3,340 posts)The nose needs to have the same angle as the rest of the face. See how the nose ends too soon, needs to continue a bit to the left to match the angle. I am talking about the tip of the nose, the pink part.
Everything else is fantastic, real command of pastel, which I have always found to be difficult, reason why I stay with oil. I admire people who do your kind of work on pastel and water colors...
You nailed it, even though it is almost a profile, the expression of the eyes is magnificent.
Good job, you are an excellent artist.
Sucha NastyWoman
(2,725 posts)Really gorgeous.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Dem_in_Nebr.
(299 posts)How did you get a cat to sit still for that long?
Gorgeous painting though!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)suncat
(41 posts)to concentrate on your beloved cat for hours! He looks like a great companion. You have got your technique for imaging fur close to, if not perfect!
I just picked up some pastels (not cheap) but I haven't begun yet. I am a little hesitant to begin...
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)They are the most fun medium ever, you will be hooked!
Thank you so much! 😍 not my kitty, just from a photo.
Oh I cant wait to see your pastel paintings in this group, I hope you will share them!😍
karin_sj
(805 posts)So beautiful! I love it!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)femmedem
(8,187 posts)Along with the wonderful technique, you've composed it beautifully. It's rare to see a pet portrait cropped like this and it creates a lovely sense of intimacy.
The tiniest suggestion, which a couple of other people have mentioned: the centerline along the pink of the nose lines up with the centerline of the mouth, as it should. But see how to the right of the centerline on the mouth there is only a tiny bit of mouth showing? But to the right of the centerline on the nose there's still a fairly substantial amount of pink nose. So it looks as if the nose is facing us a bit more than the rest of the cat is. But this is a tiny detail, one that I didn't notice right away. It's a gorgeous portrait and one you should feel very proud of. I think that you'll have plenty of business if you want to start doing this professionally.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Wonky now!
Thank you so much for your kind words and encouragement and help! 😍
femmedem
(8,187 posts)The correction looks good, and I love the new portrait as well.
And it's easier to critique than to draw: I couldn't have drawn either one of those portraits.
Demovictory9
(32,320 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Trueblue Texan
(2,371 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)TigressDem
(5,121 posts)Just for fun... saw this today and think you are in good company with subject matter.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.boredpanda.com%2Fcat-bushes-thetopiarycat%2F&psig=AOvVaw3CvMBpeH1NB3LiZVHYtJqe&ust=1653010865131000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAwQjRxqFwoTCJjGu7236vcCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE
CrispyQ
(36,225 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)pansypoo53219
(20,906 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)pansypoo53219
(20,906 posts)pansypoo53219
(20,906 posts)BigmanPigman
(51,430 posts)I like dry brush. Did you do that for the fine hair/whiskers?
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)I know. But pastel sticks and pastel pencils. 😍
SleeplessinSoCal
(8,994 posts)As if different mediums. Yet look so real.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)SleeplessinSoCal
(8,994 posts)Thanks for sharing.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)majdrfrtim
(317 posts)Thank you for sharing you prodigious talent with us mere mortals!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)KT2000
(20,544 posts)so beautifully. Love it!
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Desert_Leslie
(131 posts)Simply beautiful ... love the interplay of lights and darks. Lost my beloved 9yo cat Cutie two days ago to aggressive large cell lymphoma.
LiberalLoner
(9,761 posts)Thank you for your kind comments even in the midst of your suffering. You are a very good person. 😍😍😍