Thursday, June 28, 2012

Comfortable snuggle

I thought it was time to reveal the rest of the portrait so here it is! The rest of the body is coming along nicely. I find it quite fascinating to paint the dog's coat which sparkles of gray, silver and beige/taupe hues.
progression of a dog portrait in pastel by Colette Theriault

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Dog Portait update

After a weekend holiday camping trip, I was back at the easel working on this canine portrait. I hope to have him finished soon as I have yet another dog portrait commission to start.  I might have to bring this piece with me, along with my pastels,  on my next trip...

The snapshot below only shows half the portrait...

Dog portrait on the easel by pet artist Colette Theriault

Monday, June 18, 2012

Dog portrait on the easel

Pastel portraits are probably my favorite type of commission. I also enjoy graphite pencil portraits because of the detail I can achieve with a fine pencil lead but the richness of the pastel colors can't be beat!
This fella and his shoulder buddy are slowly coming to life on the suede board.

pet portrait commission by animal Artist Colette Theriault


Thursday, June 14, 2012

Drawing of hummingbird take 2

After looking at the hummingbird drawing with fresh eyes this morning, I decided to rework the lower right quadrant and settle on a crop where the bird is positioned  higher up. Below is the newer version.

Hummingbird

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Ruby-throated hummingbird drawing

I am not quite sure how I will be cropping/mounting the drawing yet so that explains why I left the white border. Initially, I thought of  placing the hummingbird higher up on the page but now I think he will be offset towards the bottom and a bit to the right when I mount it to the mat.

I hope you enjoyed following the progress of this piece!

ruby-throated hummingbird avian drawings and paintings by Colette Theriault

"Knight in Shining Armor" 

ruby-throated hummingbird (male)

size: 5" x 7"

medium: colored pencil

Blurred background effect using colored pencils

I thought I'd share the work in progress of the background on the hummingbird drawing. The background was gently laid down using circular motion to prevent hard lines and scribbles. The white round areas were accentuated using an electric eraser. The blurred out effect helps achieve depth within the artwork, giving it a sense of realism.

I'm off to finish the bottom portion!

progress of a colored pencil drawing of ruby-throated hummingbird by Colette Theriault

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Update on bird art on the easel

In this stage I have pretty much finished the bird with only minor tweaking anticipated. I may rework the branch a little and once I am satisfied with positioning, I will then begin to work on the background.

miniature bird painting in progress by wildlife artist Colette Theriault


Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Bird portrait in progress

I have been wanting to paint/draw a hummingbird ever since I can remember. These little marvels of nature are true gems; not only in appearance but also in the way they amuse and entertain me each time they visit my garden and feeders.  Patience (and standing completely still for sometimes 15 minutes at a time or longer) is key to getting them to come close enough in range for the camera...then throw in some luck and it is possible to get good, clear shots of them.  Here is the start of what I might call "Knight in Shining Armor".  I am using colored pencil on Fabriano paper.

Hummingbird paintings by Colette Theriault

Friday, June 1, 2012

Trumpeter Swan painting in pastel revisited

Ever since I framed this piece I felt it was inadequately painted. I hung it in my bedroom where I could see it everyday upon awakening, to remind me that someday I had to improve upon what I had done wrong.  I always felt it was too dark and gloomy overall, the birds lacked contrast against the water and the sunspots on the rear bird screamed at me to remove them. My biggest mistake was that I had painted the birds exactly as they appeared on my reference photo...They were swimming under a tree and the area was poorly lit due to the deep shade... and  then there were the distracting sunspots!

You apparently learn from your mistakes however and  I have since learned to use my artistic license more freely. I like to think that the painting has been improved upon; if not, I take it as a lesson and leave it at that.

avian painting in pastel by Colette Theriault
original version

"Family Outing"
pastel
22" x 11"
Trumpeter Swan Painting in Pastel by Wildlife Artist Colette Theriault
new version