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Denzil – A Portrait

DenzilFlatMy latest painting, a memorial for a dog named Denzil.  He was a very loved senior pup, almost 14 when he died earlier this year and I was commissioned to paint his portrait as a birthday gift.

As an animal lover myself, I always spend a little more time obsessing about these, trying to make each one the best of which I’m capable.  Our pets occupy special places in our lives and unless you’ve had to say goodbye to a furry family member, something each of us must face eventually, you can’t really understand that unique loss.  Eventually the sadness is replaced with only the happy memories, and that takes longer for some than others.  This is often front of mind while I work on these and I’ll admit to getting a little misty eyed from time to time while painting a memorial portrait, especially when the personality shows up and it finally comes together.

CanvasPrintThis was printed at 12″ x 16″ on canvas giclée with a shadow box frame.  I’ve often said that I believe my work looks best on canvas and this was no exception.  These iPhone pics of the canvas (above and below) really don’t do the quality of this print justice, credit to Kelly at Chroma Surge in Calgary who never lets me down.  I believe this is my best work to date and I was very pleased with the result.CanvasCloseup

For those interested in the tech info, this was painting in Photoshop CC using both a Wacom Cintiq 13HD and a Cintiq 24HD.  I had the luxury of months to work on this painting, so I have no idea how long the actual painting took as I worked on it in between other deadlines.  Photos were only used for reference and all painting was done with digital brush work alone.