JR portrait in progress 4 - Keeping it symmetrical

When I first started on JR’s portrait, Diane wrote:

“Maura Reilly picked us for JR because she knew we always took the more ‘challenging’ dogs from rescues and rehoming situations and wanted us to experience one with a lovely temperament. What a PERFECT dog!!!  I will go into more detail later in the process but suffice it to say he is INCREDIBLE in EVERY way.”

❤️ 

JR’s portrait was commissioned by Diane and Michael Schurman as their 35th anniversary gift to themselves.

Here's the latest progress. I’m really happy with how JR's eyes turned out. I’m making sure to get everything about his face and head perfectly symmetrical. That will be one of the striking features of this portrait.

FOR ARTISTS:

— The lighting is different on each side of JR’s face so each side is not a mirror-image of the other. But the forms of his skull and features have to match on both sides, even though the light and shadow on them creates different “shapes” in the artwork that don’t match.

— To make sure the features are the same on both sides, I drew a very light center-line (you can’t see it here) up the middle of JR’s neck and face, so I can measure out with a ruler on either side to double-check the proportions.

🎨 Prismacolor pencil on “Felt Grey” Canson Mi-Teintes paper, 12 x 18 inches.

"JR” (Am/Can CH Gatehouse Who Shot JR NTD CGC ATT RN CGN)

Bred by Maura Reilly, Gatehouse Dobermans.