Boxer and Friend Double Portrait

Sometimes I get a photo reference and think to myself how, can I possibly make this background work. In the image below you see that the dogs are sitting in front of a door, not exactly something you would want to look at for years to come in a painting.

So I took clues from the background colors and punched it up to create a soft backdrop for these two dogs. The Boxer has soft beige and pinks as well as a few brown tones to make him pop off the canvas.

The darker dog has a very interesting coat. Overall it looks dark but there are speckles of ochre and brown. After the initial thinner oil paint layers, I went back in and added thicker paint. This paint will catch the light and give the illusion of the fur having much more contrast.

This is 11x14in size a size that is ideal for a double portrait of larger dogs. If you like to learn more about how to order a similar portrait click below.