The Year of the Ox
Today is a Chinese New Year themed #furryfriendsfriday where I tell you all about a very special Lincoln Red Bull called Beverley Vantage and show a time-lapse of my digital painting of him.
Today is Chinese new year, the year of the Ox, signifying a year of calm, strong, patient, hard work.
In preparation for today I wanted to paint you all a beautiful Ox and, on my quest to find one, I was introduced to this magnificent looking fellow.
His name is Beverley Vantage, he weighs 1.2 tonnes, was champion at the Royal Norfolk show and is, according to his owners at Beverley Pastures, the ‘Aston Martin’ of the Lincoln Red world.
I confess I was a little confused about what the exact definition of an Ox was, so when I discovered it is essentially a castrated male bovine, trained as a draft animal, it was a rather comic revelation because Beverly Vantage is anything but castrated.
Indeed, his main job in life is to mate with 20-30 cows, during a 6-12 week period twice a year. It is a role in which he is both diligent and enthusiastic, as wonderfully described by his owners:
‘The speed, persistence and enjoyment with which he sets about the task can only make you smile. He certainly thinks he is the cat's pyjamas and is happiest when surrounded by his harem of ladies’
So there we have it, whilst the year ahead may be hard working, may these labours prove fruitful! Happy Chinese New Year everyone!
For a more in depth look at how this digital painting evolved have a look at the time-lapse I have prepared below. Any questions do let me know in the comments below.
Meet Maggie
This week’s #furryfriendsfriday was dedicated to a special dog called Maggie. Read about her story and how this portrait goes ones step further than other by actively weaving in symbolic narrative elements. Also on show is the time-lapse of how this digital painting evolved
This week’s #furryfriendsfriday was dedicated to a very special dog called Maggie a Border Lakeland Terrier mix with a huge dose of personality (check her out on Instagram @maggiethemooster_borderterrier)
She lives next door with my lovely neighbours and is among the first and last sounds I hear of a day, as she does her morning and evening patrol of the garden to ward off any uninvited cat or squirrel intruders.
This digital painting goes one step further than the recent portraits I’ve been doing by blending in some narrative features which tell a little more of Maggie’s story.
Like the rotten fish she dug up on Ramsgate Beach which was reburied, then found and dug up by her the next day. Or the fact that she has survived a couple of nasty cases of IBD.
She is a rather stoic little miss, in love with life, swimming, chasing balls, cats, squirrels and foxes and being a very protective big sister to my neighbour’s daughter Ivy.
Check out the time-lapse below to see how this painting progressed.
I am very interested in exploring the idea of narrative in painting and how it engages the imagination in new and unexpected ways. Part of my working process is to ask my clients prompting questions that will help reveal symbolic visual references that can be used in the painting.
Have a play with this one…what colour would you most associate with the furry friend in your life? Let me know in the comments below (Can you guess Maggie’s ? )
Whilst I have not officially launched my commission service yet, I am opening a limited number of slots between now and May, so if you would like to find out more then please DM me.
Toby the Moggie Cat
This week’s #furryfriendsfriday is all about Toby a very clever moggie. Read all about his story and watch an extended time-lapse of how this digital painting of him evolved.
This week’s furry friend digital painting is of a clever moggie called Toby. As a kitten, Toby’s owners sensibly gave him a collar with a bell to keep tabs on him in the early days after his various jabs. Quick to cotton on to the implications, Toby hid himself away for an entire day under a piano cover, still as a statue so as not to alert anyone to his whereabouts. When his owners found him, they decided to relent and gave him free reign, senza collar, until he was old enough to accept the responsibility which, as you can see here, he has duly done. Now at least, the mice he chases get fair warning!
He has also taken on the role of personal trainer to owner Irene who gets a Toby shaped weight sat on her stomach when exercising. I can almost picture him, sitting there, overseeing proceeding with due task master authority!
The time-lapse below takes you through my working process for this digital painting. What I loved about studying Toby was how many colours I discovered in his rich black coat and how full of rhythm is the baffling texture of fur!
If you were to describe, in one word, the character trait that best sums up the furry friend in your life, what would it be? Let me know in the comments below.
Rupert the English Pointer
Rupert is today’s #furryfriendsfriday star! Read on to hear his story and watch a time-lapse of this painting’s from start to finish.
It’s #furryfriendsfriday
and I’d like to introduce you to a very handsome English pointer called Rupert.
He is an avid runner with a sensitive, loving soul. He’s addicted to chasing pheasant and has a tendency to help himself to whatever is on the kitchen counter. An excitable character led on many an adventure by his nose!
Thank you to my friend Katherine for introducing us! This digital painting was the result of an 8 hour meditation on his beautiful face. I was particularly mesmerized by his amber eyes which seem themselves to be entranced by something, perhaps he has just spotted a pheasant out of the window!
Have a look at the time-lapse below which condenses and edits down 8 hours into under 10 minutes, showing you, in sped up form, my digital painting process.
In case you missed my introduction to #furryfriendsfridays here is a quick recap!
Every 1-2 weeks I will be making a digital painting of a furry friend to feature here and on Facebook and Instagram. Animals are such amazing creatures to paint and my hope is that my efforts will help raise spirits during these difficult times whilst celebrating some wonderful characters!
Do you have any furry friends that might like to be featured? If so, do get in touch !
Kitty's Story
This week is all about our furry friends and my new initiative to share with you digital paintings dedicated to these lovable creatures in the hope they may help raise the spirits during these difficult times. Today I talk about a cat called Kitty and share with you her story along with a time-lapse of my painting of her in development. Hope you enjoy!
Sunday Greetings to you all!
They say looking at pictures of animals does something good to our brains so I thought I'd start dedicating every other week to a digital painting of our furry friends in the hope it might lift the spirits during these difficult times!
I will be launching these paintings on my Instagram feed on Fridays as part of #furryfriendsfriday, so if you can’t wait to read about it here then head over to @susienathanson.
This week is dedicated to Kitty the cat, although Kitty is not her real name. Have a watch of my painting time-lapse below to hear the rather unusual story of how she entered into our lives.
I'm on the hunt for more lovely creatures with a story to tell, so if you have a special furry friend you would like me to paint and feature on these posts, then do let me know!
You'd also be helping me build a new portfolio of animals for a commission service I will be launching this year, so all hello’s welcome and who knows the next animal I post, could be one of yours!