Commissioning a Pet Portrait

People often ask if I can create a painting from their photos and the answer is yes I can. Photos can be emailed to me or sent by post, or, if you live near me, I can come and take photos and meet the sitter.

Each portrait begins with a discussion of what you are looking for in the final painting. You might have a specific painting in mind or you might not have a clear idea yet of what you'd like. Either is fine.

I'll look at your photos and we'll discuss what you have in mind. Then I'll do some quick sketches from those so that we can discuss ideas for the portrait in more detail. Your feedback is a big part of the process. If you didn't have any specific ideas for your painting then hopefully the sketches I send you will help you decide how you'd like the painting to look. If you had a specific pose in mind then the sketches I do will reflect your original ideas.

Once you've seen the sketches you can decide if you want to go ahead and what type of painting you'd like.

Oil and Acrylic Paintings

I paint in both oils and acrylics. What's the difference? Oils take a lot longer than acrylics. I like to paint in layers and as oil paint takes a lot longer to dry than acrylic paint, an oil painting takes longer to complete, about 6-8 weeks is usual but with more complex pieces it can be 3 or 4 months. Acrylics dry a lot faster so a painting can be completed in 2 to 4 weeks. Oils and acrylic paintings can be painted on stretched canvas or board.

Stretched canvas
It's a gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides and the staples are on the back of the painting so the canvas can be hung on the wall framed or unframed.

Board
A painting on board is nice and rigid and a bit more robust than a painting on canvas which makes it ideal for shipping. Board paintings will need a frame.

A 10x8 Painting on Canvas or Board       £150
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

A 12x8 Painting on Canvas or Board       £175
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

A 12x10 Painting on Canvas or Board     £200
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

A 14x10 Painting on Canvas or Board     £240
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

A 16x12 Painting on Canvas or Board     £325
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

A 20x16 Painting on Canvas or Board     £500
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

A 24x20 Painting on Canvas or Board     £840
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

Water Media on Paper

Painted in artists acrylics on 100% cotton, acid free watercolour paper. I sometimes use gouache, watercolour, and acrylic inks as well, depending on the composition of the painting and what feels right while I'm painting.

A water media painting takes about 2 weeks to complete.

A 10x8 Water Media Painting on Paper     £125
The painting is approx 10x8 inches mounted in a 16x12 mount
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

A 16x12 Water Media Painting on Paper     £225
The painting is approx 16x12 inches on watercolour paper and unmounted
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

A 20x16 Water Media Painting on Paper     £300
The painting is approx 20x16 inches on watercolour paper and unmounted
for a single portrait - plus shipping.

If you'd like a different size or you'd like a portrait with more than one sitter, or even if you're not sure what you'd like, please do feel free to email me and ask.

See A Commission In Progress

Want to see a commission painting in progress?

Slide Show

See some of my commissioned work as a slide show.