Dog Drawing / New Sketching Challenge #9 (a & b)

My final sketch of a dog from the Burlington County Shelter is a composite put together in Photoshop from two finished drawings I did for our current sketching challenge.


This week, I'm posting two different challenge photos to try to get some new peps involved!

The first photo is of my hubby, Jerry, during a snowstorm on his beloved old tractor. It looks complicated, but it is not. Remember K I S S - squint, and break the subject down into shapes (positive and negative). I find it easier to draw something when I think of it as a shape, instead of a thing. Right Brain vs. Left Brain


The second photo is one of the poor kitties I took photos of that were in jail at the shelter. I'm going to draw this guy without the bars, however. I'll probably lightly sketch in the bars though, as they do break the subject up into smaller and simpler shapes which will be an aid in the drawing process. Drawing a precise grid on your photo and the same dimensions on your paper is a classic and useful drawing technique.

Check out Art For The Animals here.

Elkhound Sketching Challenge

I got a wonderful drawing in last night from Kay. She writes;" I have recently found your blog, and love this idea. I am sorry to be late with my drawing, but here it is. I enjoy very much trying to draw dogs!"

Well Kay, actually, you are early! I usually don't post the current challenge drawing until Sunday or Monday. Feel free to send in any of the challenge drawings at any time. I always appreciate artist's efforts. Nice to meet you and thank you so much for your lovely colored pencil drawing, Kay!



Also, here's my sketch (steps 1 & 2) today. I'll post the finish tomorrow. I plan on trying to combine this pose (via Photoshop) with the first one I did earlier this week.

Anatomy Of A Portrait

Here is the sketch I did for this portrait. The first drawing shows the first two steps of my technique and the middle image shows the sketch with the watercolor wash added. This is my forth painting for the "Art For Shelter Animals" project. I decided to do an additional three watercolors, as the oils I did are still not dry. This beautiful girl, ID#D-26033, is named Sasha. The Burlington County Animal Shelter's website says; "What a pretty white German Shepherd Sasha is! She is good with kids, but a bit shy with strangers at the shelter. Her former owner said she is very loyal and is used to being around women and would probably need time to adjust to a home with men. Sasha is very intelligent and likes to play with squeak toys. Can you give this young girl a loving forever home?" See more about this project here on my web log.

Juliet, The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Portrait

I meet up with a long lost classmate from high school, Maria Czaplicki, on Facebook a month or so ago. What a wonderful age we live in! Blogging and social networking opens up our world to so many friends and experiences! Maria just got a new addition to her family, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel puppy. What a neat breed! From Wikipedia: "The breed is highly affectionate, and some have called the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel "the ultimate lap dog" or the "love sponge" of dogs. Most dogs of the breed are playful, extremely patient and eager to please. This breed is one of the friendliest of the toy group. Some Cavaliers have been known to exhibit traits in common with cats, such as perching in high places (the tops of couches, the highest pillow, etc), cleaning their own paws and can also show some birding qualities. It is recommended that care should be taken when walking a Cavalier off-leash, as they can single-mindedly chase a butterfly or rabbit onto a busy road or other dangerous situation without regard for their own safety if not properly trained." This inspired the above sketch done from her posted photo which I quickly sent off to Maria.

She loved the sketch! I followed it up with this painting. She picked it up last night at a local art show where I was demonstrating my sketching technique. Maria was going to give it to her daughter, but was talking about hanging it over her computer desk when she left! I don't think she is wanting to part with it! I'd be more than happy to do another painting of this precious angel of a dog for her daughter though! : -D