juniper

Like a fool, I sometimes paint dogs who exist only in my head. Admittedly, it can be pretty dark and scary in there. Just me and Cerberus deciding who gets through. There are no photos; there are no posers. Although, just like people, some of the dogs certainly have enough attitude to be poseurs. Because I have no visual cues for these paintings, they can wind up looking, well, quite literal. Okay, so my mind's eye can be a little anal. Depending on my mood, it has either too much discretion or not enough. Ain't it always the way...

I start with a sketch, made with the charcoal leaving nothing more than an outline. Occasionally, I do check photos for anatomical references. Anything after that shows up while I paint. What the values and hues are, where the lines get lost and found, the impression, the expression; one thing leads to another. I apply a few rules but generally try to stay out of the way. That's how dogs like Juniper get to be here. Believe me, I'm not about to tell him he doesn't look right.