Tatum O'Neal's Pet Portrait Progress

I got some more work done on Tatum's scottish terrier (R.I.P., little guy). The fluorescent lights really throw off the color in this photo, but you get the idea. My father-in-law's suggestion to obliterate the ochre/greenish color at the bottom helped immensely. That guy's a genius when it comes to painting. Some of the drawings he did during the 1956 Montgomery Bus Boycott were bought by a museum in Oberlin, OH, so if you happen to live there, be sure to keep an eye out!

Pete Meat

I just finished another pet portrait in the traditional style. It's my childhood friends' dog "Pete Meat". I think it turned out pretty well. I don't know why I'm drawn to keeping the backgrounds so vague and ethereal. Is it because I'm lazy or is it because I want to draw all attention to the subject? You decide.

Now I'm working on a posthumous portrait of Tatum O'Neal's scottish terrier. I liked the very very loose quality of just blocking in the darks that I did the first day so much that I'm tempted to stop working on it and leave it as is. I should probably take it as a sign that this portrait will go well, though, and keep going.