28 artistFebruary 2021 http://www.painters-online.co.uk?????????
T
here’s something special
about being entrusted to
draw someone’s animal family
member, and I work hard to
ensure that I capture the details the
little nuances that those close to the
animal would immediately recognise.
The majority of pet portrait
commissions are generated through
my website and social media channels,
so it’s important to post fairly regularly
to generate interest. Whilst 2020 was a
challenging year for all of us, because
my work is online-led, the commission
side of the business was fairly
consistent. For commissions I have set
prices that are based on the size of thePet portraits in
monochrome
Graphite artist Kate Priestman demonstrates how
to render the eye in a pet portrait and advises on
the business side of working to commission
piece, the cost of materials and the
number of hours they take to produce.Considerations
When I am approached about a
pet portrait, I obtain a selection of
photographs that depict the animal
in a range of poses; from these I
can get a feel for the subject and
how best to represent it. When
reviewing the photographs, I look for
a standout composition – this often
isn’t immediately apparent and I have
to imagine how it would look as a
graphite drawing. In addition I look for
excellent image quality that shows as
much detail as possible. Whilst I selectone main reference photograph from
which to draw, I like to have a number
of images to work from in order to
cross-reference the detail throughout
the drawing process. For this portrait
a particular photo stood out as it was
taken in great light conditions and had
an excellent level of detail – important
for my style of art. It was also a little
unusual in that she is looking away from
the viewer and the viewer appears to
be looking up at her slightly. I loved her
expression, which I felt represented the
characteristics that I wanted to pull out
from the owner’s description: intelligent
and alert, yet gentle.
I think it is really important to involve
the customer when deciding on a
composition, so the early stages often
involve a number of emails back and
forth to make sure that all parties are
happy with the final choice. In this
instance, to help the customer envisage
the composition more easily, I removed
the background in an online editing
package so that the photograph had a
completely white background, in line
with the paper that I would use.The process
When the composition and size of
the portrait has been agreed, I ask for
a 40-per-cent deposit to secure the
booking. I then start by working out
where to place the image on the paper;
in this instance, I wanted to leave a bit
of white space in front of the subject,
rather than putting her centrally, so she
is positioned slightly to the left. I also
take into account leaving a small border
of blank paper around the drawing,
before the mount.
I work from the original colour
photograph as I find that I can pull out
the subtleties better, although I do
convert the photograph to black and
white as well and, where needed, use
this to double-check the tonal contrasts.
Next I sketch out the drawing, focusing
on the main areas of tonal change,
shape and a rough idea of hair direction
in certain areas. When the sketch is
complete, I typically work from left to
right and top to bottom; I use a clean
piece of paper to rest my hand on,
which protects the paper from direct
contact with my skin and prevents
smudging.
My style of drawing involves multiple
layers of graphite being laid down to
build up the tones and textures. It’s a
slow, meticulous process, but one that
I find both relaxing and absorbing. As I
draw, I try to imagine how the textures
would feel and look in real life, which
really helps me to understand how
to represent it on the page. To avoidThe reference photograph for the portraitTA02p28_30_Kate.indd 28TA02p28_30_Kate.indd 28 09/12/2020 12:0609/12/2020 12:06