Lockkeeper
3-1/2" x 2-1/2" Oil on Artfix Belgian Linen
September 29, 2008
Meet Lockkeeper.
Lockkeeper retired with earnings of $166,295 as a trotter and won the Canadian Breeders Championship as a two-year-old in stakes record time. He is a gorgeous young stallion coming into his prime and has a beautiful trot, even at liberty.
He is standing at Starwin Nursery in Coleman, Michigan and although he is still a young stallion, he is already making an impression. The 2006 Michigan Trotting Colt of the Year is the Lockkeeper son, Benn's Cowboy.
I had the good fortune to meet and observe Lockkeeper in his native habitat during a May 2008 trip to Michigan. A formal portrait is now in the works, but I so enjoyed seeing him cavort in his paddock that I decided to do this at liberty portrait as a warm up.
The horse portrait showcased on this page is an ACEO horse portrait. A trading-card sized portrait. It is being painted on a cut piece of Artfix L21C Belgian Linen canvas.
I am using the classical painting technique for this horse portrait.
This technique involves establishing the painting as a half-tone first. Some artists use complementary colors in the under painting. Others use a white and one other color, but vary the color depending on the tone of the finished painting.
I usually use the same colors for every painting: Raw Umber and Titanium White. I prefer the earth tones because they dry more quickly. I refer Raw Umber because it is dark enough to create bold darks and because it has enough of a blue shade to work very well with the predominantly warmer colors that make up the basic coat colors of most horses.
This is one day's work. The extreme darks are straight Raw Umber; the extreme lights are nearly straight Titanium White. Those two colors were applied directly to the canvas using 20/0, 10/0 and 5/0 brushes, as well as a small flat sable. Colors were then blended on the canvas in the background.
The same colors were used on Lockkeeper, but were blended on the palette.
October 6, 2008
One week later. The first round of under painting has completely dried and the second round has been completed.
At this stage, detail becomes the focus. The finished under painting should look as much like a complete painting as possible. Like a very well executed graphite drawing if possible.
So I refined the lights and darks, smoothed out the transitions between the extremes and, where necessary, added highlights. I was worked on Lockkeeper's head, which wasn't quite right, and trimmed out his legs and belly.
The entire painting was reworked using the same colors (Raw Umber and Titanium White). Except for the smallest details, I used a small, well-worn flat brush to apply fresh paint and move it around on the canvas. For those smaller details, I used a 20/0 or 10/0 golden taklon round.
October 13, 2008
Color work began today. My favorite part!
There wasn't much to do. A rubbing of Raw Sienna over almost the entire painting. Paint was applied with a sable flat, then moved around with a cloth to produce a glaze with absolutely no brushstrokes. Using a cloth also allows for an ultra-thin layer of color without the use of mediums. It is my favorite way to work at this stage.
On a painting this size (3-1/2" x 2-1/2"), that doesn't take very long, so I stroked a little bit of Burnt Sienna into the upper left corner and the lower right corner and work was done for the day.
Someone told me they liked this painting and it's companion in the half-tone stage. That was not my intent from the start, but I admit it does have some appeal....
Inquire about this painting or about a portrait of your horse. Commissions are now being accepted.