Meet Eli. He will be 11 in June. Bulldog life expectancy is usually 8-10 years. I have no doubt his advanced age is due to the love and care his mom has given him over the years. I was honored and humbled she chose me to do his portrait.
For anyone that has ever been lucky enough to be owned by a Bulldog knows the special bond that develops. They truly are children with fur and four feet.
His mom found a portrait I painted of my own Bulldog on one of my boards on Pinterest. She then followed the links to my Etsy Shop. She found my watercolor pet portraits but no pastels like the ones on my Pinterest boards. So she started a convo with me inquiring if I would be willing to paint a pastel portrait even though I didn't offer them in my shop. She told me a little about her Bulldog and of course the love she had for him just poured out in her words. How could I say no?
She has been one of my favorite clients. She knew exactly what she wanted and didn't want in the portrait. She was very clear in her expectations and exactly what she wanted the portrait to convey. I can't tell you how much easier this made my job!
My first venture in pet portraits began for me as a way to try to soothe a family member's broken heart. Her beautiful American Staffordshire Terrier traveled the Rainbow Bridge far too soon. You can read about her story here
I always start my pastels by doing a sketch on Hahnemühle Premium Velour Paper. This is a specialty paper that feels like velvet. Perfect for capturing fur and whiskers. I always use a soft pastel or piece of charcoal for my sketch. Never use a regular pencil as it may damage the paper and sometimes shows through the finished painting.
Then I start putting in the darkest color. In pastel painting putting in your darkest darkest color FIRST is important. If you try to add it later over lighter colors you will never get it as dark as it should be. Putting in your darkest color helps judge the values (tones, tints and shades) of the rest of your colors.
Next I like to put in my whites so I will have the lightest value and the darkest values to judge the rest of the colors against.
Since I am right handed I work my painting from top left hand corner down to the bottom right hand corner in order to keep from smudging my work.
Once it is complete, I spray a light fixative on the work. Once that is dry I add the very last highlights which I will NOT spray. I do not use fixative on the very last layers of the painting because it can alter the colors and actually spray off the highlights.
Being able to create something special for a client makes me both happy and proud! I get great satisfaction in knowing I have created something that has special meaning and will be treasured for a lifetime.
Great work!
Posted by: Elton Cooper | 03/31/2014 at 04:33 PM
Thank you.
Posted by: Vivian Cooper | 03/31/2014 at 04:34 PM
I am Eli's mother. His daddy and I are thrilled with the portrait Vivian did for us. Her ability to capture his spirit in the painting still amazes me. She has a special gift! I am so thankful that God allowed our paths to cross. I had looked at work by other artists, but I didn't feel a connection with them. But, the second I saw her own bullies' portraits, I knew that she was the ONLY person that I trusted to do a portrait of Eli. It never felt like a customer/artist transaction, but more of a time of sharing Eli with someone that understood our love for him.....and that is priceless! Xoxox
Posted by: Darlene Perkins | 03/31/2014 at 04:58 PM
Thank You Darlene. I am so glad you are pleased with your portrait. I really enjoyed working with you, it was such a pleasure. Thank you for your kind words here, they mean the world to me.
Posted by: Vivian Cooper | 03/31/2014 at 05:37 PM