Today would have been a lovely day for a walk along the beach but I have only got 9 days to go till the exhibition at Horsebridge Gallery (Whitstable) and I really need to crack on with work for it. First I have to finish the labrador commission so I worked more on it today. I made the mistake of spraying it with Fixative which dulled all the delicate highlighting I'd spent ages working on. I should know by now that Fixative dulls some pale pastel colours quite severely and there were a lot of pale blues/mauves and greys used on this. Usually I steam the pastel which works better but I had a bit of a Senior moment and reached for the Fixative can before the brain kicked into gear.
I've re-worked some of the highlights but will call it a day now to avoid getting slapdash - tomorrow is another day and all that ...
What a lovely portrait Sue, so much life in those eyes!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous finish Sue!!Very lovely portrait.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Erik and Colette - she isn't quite finished yet but I needed to have a break so will whiskers etc tomorrow and find out what her owner thinks :-)
ReplyDeleteLottie is lovely, Sue! And I'm sure Roxy really appreciates getting rid of all that itchy excess fur!
ReplyDeletevery nice fur :D
ReplyDeletesteam pastels?
Beautifully finished, Sue! I know the owners will be so pleased with this portrait. Love the sheen!
ReplyDeleteReally lovely Sue : )
ReplyDeleteThanks Jan. Before Roxy was retired I used to fully clip her coat a couple of times each year so the moult wasn't too much of a problem - but these days as she just 'potters' in the field by day and is stabled at night she keeps her fur coat in addition to wearing rugs (got to keep the old lady warm)!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the lovely feedback ladies. I will email the client today for comment before adding the final touches I think.
Hi Jennifer ..... If I'm using Fisher 400 or Pastelmat papers I prefer to hold the picture over a steaming kettle/pan which 'sets' the pastel - obviously you have to allow the paper to thoroughly dry before continuing though. Cheaper and just as effective as Fixative. Not sure if it would work on flimsier paper though.
Lovely work Sue, and I hope the exhibtion goes well and you make some sales.
ReplyDeletethanks for the info about steaming :D very helpful
ReplyDeleteAnother beautiful portrait. The black and grays are so rich and colorful, it seems like you were able redo what you dulled with the fixative. I would like to get my hands on some of the Fischer 400 paper, not sure if it's sold in the states but I hear so many good things about it.
ReplyDelete