Tala

It has been quite a while since I last picked up a paintbrush. I don't have any excuses, I suppose I have just had a 'block' of some sort!

However, as I comeback I wanted to attempt a subject I haven't tried before. 
Any young animal is a challenge, and I thought a great subject would be a puppy. This is 'Tala', my parents' new German Shepherd. I kept the paint application very loose, working on very wet paper, allowing the colours to bleed into one another. I later added darker patches onto the still wet paper, to add shadow and tone, adding extra water where I wanted lighter fur areas. The finishing touch was some smaller splashes and flicks of thicker paint to highlight her fluffiness. The most difficult part of her to paint were her eyes. I added bright highlights of white to make them shine, then wet the paint around the pupils and lifted it with some tissue to further highlight the colour of the irises. I don't normally work this loosely, but I think I will try and do it more in the future as I am very pleased with the effects.

In other news I have submitted 3 paintings to the 2012 National Exhibition of Wildlife Art. Fingers and toes crossed that they shortlist at least one of my paintings!