If you know me, you know that my dog Summer is my pride and joy, so it's not surprising that a lot of people ask me why I don't paint Dogs. I don't paint dogs because I never studied their anatomy. I am a firm believer that you have to understand what you are looking at in order to paint it (at least in the case of realism). Growing up I used to think I wanted to be a Horse Vet, so I studied all I could about horses and how they worked in addition to following the Vet around the barn! In art school we studied Human Anatomy, skeletal and musclature. I really believe this helps a great deal.
However, I decided to try my hand at painting Summer today. Admittedly the pose is a toughy, with lots of foreshortening, an awkward pose and strange angles. While I'm happy with the painting, I did have to work really hard to figure out what was going on in terms of her body. Maybe I'll have to get a book on dog anatomy and learn how they are put together.
4 comments:
Your point about "knowing your subject's anatomy" makes sense - and explains why the horses are so good.
P.S. It's great to see a painting of Summer!! ......The expression in her eyes is great - but she looks HUNGRY. Oh wait she always looks hungry!
Oh I just love the expression in the eyes!
Great point about understanding the subject! It's sooo true about abstract art as well.
Thanks for the compliments! She has such an expressive face, I'm glad it came across...and yes she always is hungry!!!!
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