Posts Tagged: torn paper collage
New Artwork: “Hope” Custom Pet Portrait
This is Hope, my latest torn paper collage custom pet portrait. Hope is a very special dog. As you can see from the portrait, she’s a service dog and she makes her owner’s life so much easier every day. Like other service animals, Hope also spends time “off duty,” but this portrait is intended to commemorate the selfless service she performs daily at her job.
Would you like a custom portrait of your own pet? You can check out the process here or email me with any questions!
New Artwork: Black and White Goat Torn Paper Collage
This cute little black and white goat lives at the Akron Zoo. They have a barnyard area there with sheep and goats that you can feed. It’s super popular with the children! The goats are always showing off and begging for food; it’s a fun exhibit to visit.
I’m considering doing a series of pieces inspired by children’s fairy tales. This guy, along with my other two goat torn paper collages, could be the “Three Billy Goats Gruff.” I could do Little Red Riding Hood, the Three Little Pigs, the Ugly Duckling. There are so many possibilities. What do you think?
If you’d like a copy of this charming fellow, you can get one in my Etsy shop, here. My other goats are also available here and here.
New Artwork: Black and White Cat Torn Paper Collage
Here’s a recently finished portrait of a black and white cat. He’s a stray that lives near my father’s house. They’ve fed him since he was a kitten and call him Harry. I got to see him when I visited for Christmas and he came to the door begging for food.
Whiskers are tricky things. Difficult to make with torn paper. It’s hard to get them delicate-looking enough that they don’t overpower the rest of the piece. I find it’s often better to leave them off unless they’re an important part of the look of the animal. With this guy, the whiskers were definitely important—the bright white whiskers against the stark black fur really stand out and become a critical feature in his ‘look.’
Are there any features or aspects of your artwork or preferred mediums that you find particularly challenging? I’d love to hear from you. Tell me in the comments below!
And if you’d like a portrait of this strikingly handsome guy, you can a print from my Etsy shop, here.
Throw Back Thursday: “Windi” custom pet portrait
This is “Windi,” a companion piece to “Emmie,” who I introduced to you earlier, here.
Windi is another Papillon who lives with her ‘sister’ Emmie, so these two portraits were created and intended to be hung as a pair. The challenge here was to create two separate pieces that each expressed the personality of the specific dog (and they have Very different personalities!) while still visually fitting together well. I tried to keep the backgrounds similar in color while still allowing for variation to express Windi’s more exuberant personality.
Have you ever created multiple pieces of art that were intended to be displayed together? Diptychs, triptychs, or just companion pieces, like these two pet portraits? What do you like about creating related pieces? What do you find challenging?
Interested in getting a custom portrait made of your pet? Contact me by email or fill out the request form here for more information. I’d be delighted to help!
Throw Back Thursday: “Emmie” custom pet portrait
This is “Emmie” and it’s one of my earlier custom pet portraits. I actually know Emmie personally and she’s an absolute sweetheart. I do a fair number of dog portraits. They’re easier to get good photos of than cats, certainly. And I always work from photos with my pet portraits. For one, it’s difficult to get an animal to pose for any length of time! Also, it allows me to create portraits of animals I’ve never met, though I do like to be able to get a feel for the personality of the animal.
My style has changed slightly since I created “Emmie,” becoming even more realistic-looking, with finer detail. But even in these earlier pieces, capturing the personality of animal is just as important as rendering the physical likeness. Some pieces are more successful at that than others, and yes, I’ve had to completely start over on occasion when something just wasn’t working right. Fortunately, that’s not something that happens too often—there’s a lot that can be done to ‘rescue’ a piece before it gets to that point. In a collage, you can always add a layer on top of what is already there!
Have you noticed your style changing over time? Is it subtle or a dramatic difference?
Are you interested in getting a custom portrait made of your pet? Contact me by email or fill out the request form here for more information. I’d be delighted to help!