Watercolour pet portraits are a popular choice for animal lovers. The nature of watercolour as a painting medium allows for expressive work, but also fine detail. In the right hands, it’s a versatile and gorgeous thing!
As an artist, I love having the ability to tune my work to both the subject, and the required outcome, and watercolour delivers this flexibility.
In this post I’m going to share a few examples with you, and I’ll talk about pricing. If you want to know my prices you can click here to find out straight away.
Pet Paintings in Watercolour – Paper Types
I have two favourite papers, and they are at opposite extremes of surfaces! They are both 100% cotton but are very different. One is very bright white and smooth, and one is a handmade rough paper. I love them each for different reasons.
The smooth paper is great for fine detail and a clean finish. I also use it for botanical paintings, and I have frequent ‘oh wow’ moments when I see how the paint mixes on the surface. It’s also good for pet portraits where the animal has a lot of white. This is because I can use negative painting with the white of the paper to create lovely shapes.
The other paper is made in India and left to dry in the sun. Each time I buy it there will be a slightly different tone and texture. It’s very good for expressive paintings, and the edges of the paper add to the composition.
If you ask me to paint a pet painting for you, I will discuss your preference in terms of style. I will also make sure I can meet your deadline.
Pet Portraits with a Background
Many artists opt for simple pet portraits with no background, and I think this can create a stunning piece of art.
However, there are no hard and fast rules.
This is your painting, and my job is to get to the bottom of why you want it, where it’s going to hang, and what your preference is.
Often there is a story… a memory of a special moment, or a special place. These are the reasons I paint. I can bring these things to life so that you can see them through my eyes.
If a background is required it’s obviously going to take me a bit longer and depends upon the complexity. In this instance I will do a number of sketches for you to review before going ahead.
It’s worth saying that with every painting I create I keep you in the loop to make sure you’re happy, but with an pet artwork with a background the first step is agreement on the composition.
Watercolour Pet Portraits UK Prices
I am based in the UK, and generally if you are here too I offer free delivery.
If you are overseas, I’d need to check on secure shipping, but generally £20 (GBP) covers things.
The following prices are for my pet paintings in watercolour. If you have any questions, please drop me a line or call (details later).
Examples of Watercolour Animal Paintings
Here’s a selection of recent paintings. I’m working on five more at the moment, so I’ll add those soon too. I post daily on Facebook too.
For now, all that’s left to do is give you my contact information. Well, if you’d like to know more about me first, I have also written a post about my life as a UK pet portrait artist .
I keep my Painterly Ponders Facebook page up to date, but have also set one up just for pets. That one is facebook.com/characterfulpetportraits.
I’m also available on: +44 07546 105762
Finally…
Thanks for reading. I will add some more photos soon, but please feel free to reach out if you have any questions. To help me filter comments and spam, it would be useful if you use the subject line ‘watercolour pet portraits’.