Pet Portrait: Gibby the Labrador Retriever
Meet Gibby, a yellow lab and St. Louis sports fanatic just like his family’s previous dog Barclay, who I was fortunate enough to draw 8 years ago. Both boys have unfortunately passed, but they are still deeply loved and missed every day.
Original Photo:
Paper Used: Strathmore Recycled Drawing Paper (400 Series) cut to 8x10"
Prismacolor Colored Pencil:
Henna - PC1031 Rosy Beige - PC1019 Nectar - PC1092 Blush Pink - PC928 Pink Rose - PC1018 Dark Umber - PC947 Dark Brown - PC946 Sienna Brown - PC945 Light Umber - PC941 Beige Sienna - PC1080 Ginger Root - PC1084 Cream - PC914
Black - PC935 90% Warm Grey - PC1058 70% Warm Grey - PC1056 50% Warm Grey - PC1054 30% Warm Grey - PC1052 20% Warm Grey - PC1051 10% Warm Grey - PC1050 90% French Grey - PC1076 70% French Grey - PC1074 50% French Grey - PC1072 30% French Grey - PC1070 20% French Grey - PC1069 10 French Grey - PC1068 White - PC938
Progress Pics:
Behind the Scenes Struggles: When it comes to dogs’ faces, there is a certain amount of predictability when it comes to the direction fur lays. That said, I’m still super uncomfortable when it comes to having to make stuff up, which I had to do a lot of for Gibby’s portrait seeing as the original photo was a bit muddy when it comes to details. Fur above the eyes fans up and out towards the ears, fur on the muzzle goes down and way from the nose, but the area where the muzzle connects to the rest of the face? That fur goes every which way, which is why my desktop looked like this at one point:
I also stared at and second guessed every decision I made about this section of Gibby’s neck for far too long. Like, an embarrassing length of time.
Time-Lapse Video: Coming Soon!
Time Spent: 54 hours and 19 minutes
Up Next: I’ve got one more completed 8x10” portrait to share of a beautiful black and white border collie named Maggie, before moving on to a massive portrait of 6 Golden Retrievers. That is gonna be a real doozy!
Until next time!
Lauren H.