Tater the Tot gets his first portrait!

Months ago my folks had to say a painful goodbye to our beloved pitbull, Simon. We had Simon for 15 wonderful years, getting another dog was the last thing on anyone’s mind, except for my mother who was home alone for months with her grief while my father and I worked.  She ventured into Manhattan on three separate occasions to look at dogs and settled on this sweet lil pup!

Tater hours away from euthanasia when my mother found him and she believes that simon led her to him. I can see it, Simon would not want just ANY dog to take his place on the couch. 🙂

 

Tater has been a joy since joining our family.  He is lively, playful, social and funny. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to open my heart to another pet when my mother brought him home, but I am so happy that I did. I can’t imagine home without him.

Naturally, I have to draw his portrait and this pencil drawing is only the first of many to come. I chose one of the many photos I had of him sleeping. I wanted to depict his epic style of comfort.

 

Initially I was going to draw Tater in a more illustrative pen and ink style – hence the border and composition of the image – but got carried away with using my graphite pencils. It took me about two evenings to complete. Mom was happy and dad said that I made him look “too lazy!” hahaha.

 

 

Hope you enjoyed!

If you are interested in commissioning a pencil or painted portrait of your awesome pet then please visit my Etsy shop.

 

Peace,

Amber

Weekly Art Challenge: Tomorrow

Hello Folks!!

The theme for this week’s friendly art challenge is TOMORROW! It was a tricky challenge, but I think we managed to come up with some creative interpretations. What do you think?

 

RJ’s: ART ADVENTURE, digital collage – I love this piece!! Its a little funky, a little dreamy, definitely a bit retro (the imagery reminds me very much of the old school video game graphics from my childhood) and whole lot of fun! RJ had explained that he was inspired by both his past and future travels when creating his piece, and I can definitely see where and how his travels have influenced his imagery – those perfectly puffy white sheep are most definitely and partly reminiscent of, but not limited too, a few road trips that we have taken together. The colorful layering of bold patterns and textures created a quilted affect that only reinforces his visual story telling and sense of adventure. There is a part of me that can’t help but want to invoke my inner Alice, jump through the pink window and run wild through this vivid adventure!

 

Mikayla’s: DAWN,  Crayon and pencil –  Rj’s very talented niece has created another wonderful work of art for us this week! I’m very much impressed by her use of color! She cleverly layered reds, oranges and yellows to create a glowing sunrise and was very smart to leave the soaring bird white so that it would stand out against the primarily warm color spectrum. I look at the bird and wish I could join him in flight on what looks like a perfect morning. I also love how both the coconut trees bend toward the sun, as if they are eagerly greeting their friend. Great job Mikayla! If I had a gold star I would give you one 🙂

 

 

 

Mine: TAROT CARDS (The Fool, The Lovers and Strength), pen and ink with watercolor – When Rj gave me this week’s challenge I must admit that I was a bit stumped.  I had to spend a couple of days thinking about what the heck could I create that would interestingly depict ‘Tomorrow‘. My mother offered some decent suggestions, but nothing seemed just ‘right’. Then I began to think about fortune telling and the beautiful artwork depicted on tarot cards. I have my own deck of tarot cards, given to me by my mother years ago, that I sometimes still use for fun. I picked a few of my favorites from the major arcana – The Fool, The Lovers and Strength – and worked on recreating each card to reflect my own personal metaphors while still maintaining the core meaning of each card.

The Fool – I wanted to depict a man who  hasn’t quite grown up yet and is in search of new experiences, but not fully aware of his surroundings because he is too absorbed with his own pleasure. He has a lot of learning to accomplish and the potential to take a wrong step should he avoid life’s lessons.

The Lovers – For this card I wanted to combine imagery that reflected both past metaphors and current trends. Though times may have changed, some things will always remain the same; the desire to connect and love another.

Strength – Traditionally this card depicts a young maiden taming a lion. I chose to substituted the lion with a pack of lovable well behaved pit bulls.

Of course I could not resist inserting my beloved dandelions into each card and I was quite upset when my pen leaked black ink onto my Strength card. Also, I wish I had drawn the people a bit better – Illustration is not my strength – but in the end I am happy with what I created and had plenty of fun working on them!

It was a good challenge, RJ!

 

Next week’s theme: MANDALA!!