Dog Pet Portrait of Two Chow Mixes in Oil

There are two adorable dogs in this oil portrait. Shadow and Barkley are both Chow mixes, but they look very different.

I painted this happy pair on 5x7 inch canvas. They are two of the five pets I did for a client. The other three are here: Sam - Leonberger, Lila - Mixed Breed, and George - Whippet.

You can see the finished portrait of these two Chow Mixes by clicking here, or keep on reading to see a quick demo of how I painted them. Click images to see them larger.

I decide a blue background will work well for Shadow and Barkley - lighter blue behind Shadow since he is dark and a bit darker behind Barkley. After painting the background, I rough in Shadow's black fur with mixes of blue, white, rose and brown paint:

Barkley's long fur is done and I've painted her tongue using the same blue and rose tones that I used in her fur. Only the eyes left to do now:

Below you can see Shadow's eyes. They look like the reference photo, but I'm not totally satisfied with them. She will look more alert if they are larger and more open.  I'll adjust them later when I work on the final touches:

Now I begin to rough in Barkley's golden fur and her nose. I use yellow, white, brown and blue paint for her fur:

Here I'm painting Barkley's eyes. First some brown to get color for the iris:

Then the black pupils, some darker shadow and highlights. The eyes really make the portrait come alive!

Now I fix Shadow's eyes. I make them rounder and more open. Much better!

Here is the finished portrait. Aren't they sweet?

Shadow and Barkley Chow mixes - pet portraits in oil on canvas

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