The Trials of a Pet Portrait Artist!

I have a new commission to paint a very sweet, but lively, LowChen dog. The owner did not have any good photos of him and he's definitely a dog who wouldn't sit still long enough to have his portrait painted so I took some photos of him for references. It almost seemed like a scene out of a Laurel and Hardy movie or something! Just as I'd snap the picture, Samson would turn his head
or scoot completely out of the frame! Food was a great incentive for him - an incentive to dance around until he got a treat from you, that is. At one point, it almost seemed as if he was laughing at us!


I did end up getting some decent photos of him and it was really a fun challenge doing so. Not only did I get some reference photos, I also got to know Samson a bit better. I had never seen a LowChen in person and had only recently even heard of the breed so this was a great opportunity for me. If Samson is any indication of the traits of the breed, I'd definitely recommend one for a pet. He's loving and lively and really beautiful!

A New Painting

"Prince Harry"
a watercolor painting by
and copyright to
Jan Gibson

This is Prince Harry who was rescued by the Italian Greyhound rescue in our area and who found a loving home with Mary. I think Harry has a decidedly regal look about him and even though his name may not be Italian, his bearing definitely fits his name.

I enjoyed painting Harry and it went surprisingly fast for me. I worked on the painting between the "Big Project" and the garden and my husband's doctor visits and still managed to finish it in a relatively short time.

As always, critiques and comments appreciated. I show Mary the finished portrait on Saturday so may be able to put to use any comments you might have.

Full Tilt Ahead Again!

First Cucumber
a digital painting by
and copyright to
Jan Gibson

Life is whirling at breakneck speeds again & I apologize for not updating my blog in a more timely manner!

I'm still working on the big project but my husband has had some minor surgery so that has slowed everything down considerably especially right here around a holiday. He can't lift or bend or do any yard work for another week or so and of course, the garden has finally decided to start producing!

There's not a lot coming in at the moment but we've been pretty dry so watering is a must if we want the veggies to continue to produce. Between doing a little picking in the garden, watering and driving my husband to his doctor appointments, etc., art has had to take something of a back seat.

However, I couldn't resist a quickie digital painting of one of our first cucumbers of the season! I really wanted to try all that speckling and striping in pastel but just didn't have the time. One of these days ------

I haven't done any digital painting in quite a while as I've been working on re-learning watercolors and learning pastels. When my "studio" was no larger than a closet, about the only art I had room to do was digital painting. However, since it is done very much like traditional media, I think I transitioned back to watercolors and other media quite well. And I also think my drawing skills have vastly improved. I've always disliked drawing because I resent the time it takes me. Not only that, but all the erasing and changing things left my paper a mess. That's the beauty of digital drawing/painting. Everything erases cleanly and quickly!

So, enjoy viewing the cucumber as much as we've enjoyed eating them this past week or so!