"Plato" :Pet Portrait

Well, I'm creating pet portraits now and it's been exciting so far. I would love to create a new one each day. Here's my most recent one of Plato, which is Evening's Labrador. Thanks Evening!

I'm open for more commissions if you like my work and would enjoy a portrait of your favorite pet.

Pet Portraits

I figured that since I've been creating these daily paintings of roses and animals I'd give it a shot and create meaningful pictures of pets as well.

Please let me know if you have any questions at all.

Thank you!

Flamingos

Here's my most recent oil painting, a 6 x 6 on linen. I do enjoy utilizing a variety of techniques to apply paint to canvas.

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“I love the texture of paint made of colored earth, of oil from the trees and of canvas and paper. I love the expression of paint from a brush or a hand smearing charcoal, the dripping of paint and moisture of water, the smell of the materials. I delight in the changeable nature of a painting with new morning light or in the afternoon when the sun turns a painting orange or by firelight at night. I love to see it, hold it, touch it, smell it, and create it. My gift is to share my life by allowing others to see into my heart and spirit through such tangible, comprehensible and familiar means. The paint is part of the expression.”

Kipper

As best I can recall this is the first pet portrait I've attempted in oil. It's of my friend Cliff's dog, Kipper, a mix of German and Shepherd and beagle, I think.

One thing in life I enjoy is painting scenes outdoors, when the sunlight ties together the world creating a harmony based on the time of day.

Elephants and Color

When I had gone to AZ I visited their Zoo and observed these Pachyderms with their massive form reflecting the sunlit grass. As they trumpeted around I tried to remember the hues that bounced off of their leathery hide.

I had heard it uttered once, and I'm seeing it now, the most  chroma, I mean pure hue rather than some desaturated, muted tone, can be seen in the areas of the form that are transitioning out of shadow and light. The not quite areas, the wishy washy expanses seen in the form. Look at these places and the color will be there.

I try to push chroma until it verges on breaking the value, and if I go to far then the integrity of the form breaks asunder and the gestalt fails as a composition. But what else is there? I didn't go into painting to be a meat photocopier.

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Arizona and Desert Big Horns

I had recently visited the state of Arizona and had a chance to see some areas of interest in the southern city of Tucson. I wouldn't mind living in that desert region.

It was fascinating to see the western landscape change from rolling hill country dotted with juniper and oak to a drier, less humid and arid desert space with mountain views. Large Saguaro cactus reaching towards the cloudless sky replaced the oak trees of Central TX that I had grown familiar with seeing. The city of Tucson is a pretty SW mountain town with the Catalina range to the north (Mt.Lemmon) and the Rincon's to the east. Depending on the time of day and weather, the city can have a backdrop of a solid blue tinted shape.

I wasn't able to do much hiking since I'm still recovering from a rock climbing injury that I had sustained in mid April, but I did manage to hobble short distances and in one outing with my friend, Cliff, I saw one of these Desert Big Horn Sheep:

I'm drawn to the symbol of the mountain goat, and this Big Horn Sheep reminded me as to why I liked climbing in the first place. I had enjoyed the simple freedom of movement and the eventual control over fear.

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Thanks for viewing my work and Happy Painting!

Brian Lee

Pink and Yellow

This rose was one of the more challenging ones for me to draw because of its intricate, star-like structure. There were many color changes within the petals of this rose, which were caused by the reflected warmth of the sun. In this image you can see thin use of oil and also the build up of thick layers for the lights. This is my way of approaching the study of light, and I hope it may add variety to a painting. Thanks again to the beautiful Cordair garden.
Happy painting!
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