Welcome!

Welcome to the first posting on my work in progress blog. I will be using this blog for updates of commissioned portraits on a daily basis. This will enable the customer to see how their painting is coming along and also to see how I work, to understand each process involved in creating the portrait. I work in acrylic on stretched canvas producing a result similar to oils but without the long drying time. The photos of the work in progress will be taken under studio conditions with daylight bulbs so the colour may differ throughout.

This commission is of two gorgeous Springer Spaniels called Holly and Freddy. I started yesterday by putting the background on. This takes some time to do as I have to put two layers on to ensure proper coverage. Achieving a mottled background is also quite tricky with acrylic due to it's fast drying time, I have to put quite thick layers on and spray with a fine water mist to keep it moist until I am ready to blend.

Today I blocked out the main colours on the dogs. This is to ensure that when I start to paint, I have very little of the canvas showing through and it also gives depth to the painting. The black paint on these two is still wet hence their shine! Once this is completely dry it will be ready for the next stage so keep posted.