Progression of a Brittany Spaniel Watercolor

I often share how I market, and what is happening with my day to day activities as an artist, but forget to share my art! I am so focused on my Facebook page, since there are thousands of viewers, that my blog takes a second place ranking for my time. But, as I continue to read my subscriptions on social media from Mashable and other feeds, they keep telling about the importance of a blog for traffic. These links to my other pages may not even get noticed. So, as a full time artist, I need all the exposure I can  get, to find people who may be interested in what I have to offer.

Yesterday, I had mentioned that some told me to stick to what I know, and I had replied that all I know is that Art came knocking at my soul and I answered big time! Painting every day for over a year.

Today, I will show you yesterday's painting. This is a  8x10 watercolor commission.    My price points are  quite reasonable when you consider how expensive it is to set up a art business and how many hours it takes to market,  research, improve skills to stay in business.  Yes, art is fun, but it takes extreme dedication as a new person in the marketplace. I work at my craft every waking hour and in my dreams too!  It really is a 24hr a day job.


Okay, enough of that,  here is what you want to see, the photos showing my steps of creating a portrait.

Step 1. )
I draw a light sketch on the watercolor paper. I use 140lb paper and tape it to my board, wet the enitre surface with a large brush, let sit until dry.

Then, I start with the eyes. If the painting doesn't speak to the viewer with the eyes, then you did not achieve the goal. For the eyes are  the window to the soul.  Then I move on to the nose.

Step 2.)
I define the structure of of the face. lay in some washes and directions of the movement of the fur.

Step 3.)

Then I add values, dark and light tones to make the painting appear to  have dimension. I am still adding direction with the brush strokes, but the watercolor will lift and blend with subsequent layers, and as I progress the lines will soften and become one with enough different values to look like fur. At this point I have used eleven different tubes of paint. These tubes of paint are tiny. 5ml 0.17fl oz. about the size of my pinky! They cost between 8.00 and 22.00 a tube. My favorite brands are Holbein and Winsor Newton. The colors are very concentrated and I can achieve the look I'm going for without too many layers.  I 've never counted the layers, for I work fast, and keep building until I'm satisfied. Each 8x10 portrait takes an average of six hours to paint.

 Step 4.)

This stage I define more of the face and sketch in the ears. As I progress, I keep adding touches to the eyes and nose, making sure they are in keeping with my desired effect.

Final Step

a few more hours of adding layers to get the color richness I like, I top off w/some fine details - and I'm done.

 Pam's Watercolor Pet Portraits FB page

I post my work in progress on my Facebook page, and always show my client along the way. Watercolor is translucent so there is no margin for error. Unlike with Acrylic, if you get something wrong, you can paint over with white and start again. I work with both mediums, but watercolor is my favorite. I like the way the paintings evolve and come alive. The way the painting loose more free and loose.

I hope you enjoyed watching my steps.