Flowers for Belle

Greetings to All and Happy New Year! I wanted to share with you one of the latest additions to my It's A Dog's Life Series titled, "Flowers for Belle".

This commission was and is very special to me. My clients had been contemplating a painting of Belle for well over a years time. The painting process for commissions can take a bit of time because of the emotional attachment to the commission, the process in finding reference images, the composition process, finalized by the actual airbrush work and Varnish process.

In the end we could not decide on just one image to feature sweet Belle. The lovely memories associated with each image the clients provided were so amazing, we decided to create a collage of Belle in her various poses. The clients were delighted and then had the idea of incorporating an image of Belle as a puppy too. What a wonderful idea!

My process for the layout of a painting takes a bit of working, reworking, until I am happy with the composition. A collage can be tricky as it can sometimes appear messy, tacky, or just doesn't have flow. This layout worked well in a rustic composition with the various poses of Belle found in the wildflowers and grasses.

Below you will find the finished piece captured only by my phone camera, so details and lighting on this image are not as spectacular as the original painting, but it is shareable. Hope you enjoy looking and thank you for your support through the years, it is truly amazing to be able to share my work with so many!

May you have a beautiful new year filled with great memories! Sending you smiles, Candie