Curious Glance: The First Study in the MazArt Portfolio Series
I painted this Dalmatian because I couldn’t resist that head tilt. Anyone who’s owned a dog knows the look. They’re trying to work you out, wondering what you’re up to, and it gives them so much character.
Curious Glance is the first painting in my new MazArt Portfolio Series. I’ll be sharing the process from the underpainting through to the finished piece, so you can see exactly how the painting develops.
From underpainting to finished painting
For this painting, I began with an underpainting, establishing the structure and making sure the values were working before introducing colour. Getting those foundations right makes everything that follows much easier, if the values aren’t working, adding more colour won’t solve the problem.
Once I was happy with the structure, I began building the colour over the top, developing the painting gradually through further layers. This is where the realism starts to emerge: the fur gains depth, the eyes begin to come alive and the finer details can be added without losing the structure established underneath.
What we're working on in this piece
There’s a lot packed into this little Dalmatian study.
White fur that still looks white. White fur is rarely painted with pure white. Most of what you’re seeing is made up of soft greys, reflected colours and carefully placed highlights. Getting those relationships right is what gives white fur its shape without making it look dull or flat.
Black markings that belong in the coat. Dalmatian spots can easily end up looking as though they’ve been painted on afterwards. Paying attention to their values and edges helps them sit naturally within the fur rather than looking as though they’re sitting on top of it.
Eyes that hold your attention. The eyes are often the first place we look in an animal portrait. Small details such as the catchlights, subtle colour shifts in the iris and the surrounding fur all help to create a natural, believable expression.
The subtle colours you almost miss. White fur gives you a wonderful opportunity to look for colour rather than simply reaching for white and grey. I used quite a lot of sage green through the shadows in this painting, alongside reflected blues and warmer creams. These colours can be very subtle, but they help create depth and make the white fur feel far more natural.
Why I'm doing something a little different
The Portfolio Series is designed to sit alongside my Beginner and Intermediate courses.
Those courses are very much step-by-step. We work through every stage together, and I explain my colour mixing and the decisions I’m making in detail, so you can build a solid understanding of the MazArt Method.
The Portfolio Series takes that understanding a step further.
You’ll still have everything you need to complete the painting, including tracings, reference photographs, colour swatches and colour mixes where they’re helpful. But rather than following me brushstroke for brushstroke, I’ll encourage you to make more of your own decisions. I’ll explain why I’m making certain choices, while leaving room for you to develop your own eye and become more confident in the choices you make.
Over time, I want these paintings to become more than individual tutorials. The Portfolio Series will build into a reference library you can return to whenever you need it. If you’re painting a white dog and want to revisit how I approached cool shadows, or you’re working on a ginger cat and need to remind yourself of a particular colour mix, you’ll know exactly where to look.
And along the way, you’ll build a portfolio of finished paintings that shows just how much your skills are developing. Whether you paint purely for pleasure or hope to take on commissions in the future, there’s no substitute for putting brush to canvas and completing one painting after another.
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