Should my Pet Portrait be a Painting, a Drawing, or a Photograph?
Lola
All of these artistic choices are wonderful ways to immortalize your special animal; all of them can for sure turn out to be beautiful pieces of art, executed by talented artists. I would want an important piece of work to do the job of immortalization for my special animal.
A well executed Painting on canvas does this job better than anything else. Here is why:
The painting, and drawing of a portrait, is ancient, this is where real portraiture started, long before photography the likenesses of people and animals were adorning castles, churches, government buildings and homes. This still goes on today unchanged throughout the world. This one truth makes the notion of a real, painted with a brush, by hand, on canvas portrait more Important than any other option.
A Charcoal Drawing is also a good choice:
Drawing has of course been around longer than painting, and there is great skill involved in drawing realism, Drawing is very important to the painter, it is where it all starts, and I draw throughout the process of painting a piece. I believe a good painting cannot exist without good drawing, and the paint application is the next step that raises the bar for me as far as a product that best serves the purpose of importance in portraying your special animal. A finely portrayed Charcoal or Pencil Portrait does have attributes that make it a worthwhile Portrait option as well.
A Pet Portrait Photograph?
As is the case with drawing, I use photography to a large extent as a painter. I photograph subject matter for reference, and I photograph my paintings for reproduction and archival purposes, so I have nothing negative to say about this wonderful art form. And it IS an art form, and takes great skill and knowledge to capture a beautiful and unique photo. My personal problem with a photo as a Pet Portrait goes back again to the notion of the perceived importance of the piece. The reality is that most people have very large stashes of photos around depicting there animals, and these are very special and at times are enlarged and framed. Everyone can and does do this. Point being I believe a photograph, no matter how perfect and professionally done lacks the uniqueness, and importance, as a piece of wall art, that a Painting or Drawing has. I believe the accomplished human artist can bring much more to the piece of work than the camera can.
A Painting will cost you more.
All of these options will cost you money, Drawings and Photographs will need to be framed and protected, and they will not have the durability or the wall life, if you will that an Acrylic or Oil painting will have. A painting can survive for hundreds of years if cared for properly. A Painting will cost you more money, there is a reason for this, other than the time and skill it takes to execute… the aforementioned perceived Importance is also at stake.
After doing the research, Any option you choose is a good one!
As with all things artistic, what looks good to one does not necessarily appeal to another. There is no right and wrong as long as your portrait portrays your animal the way you want it to. Really it comes down to what you think looks good and what you think will best do the job to immortalize your special animal.
Thank you for reading this Pet Portraits By Cy blog post.
“Lola” above, 16″ x 20″ Acrylic on canvas, is really happy to have been painted!
