Melanie & Nicholas ‘Behind The Scenes’ Blog – Welcome!
Welcome to the all-new Melanie & Nicholas ‘Behind The Scenes’ Blog! We’re thrilled to invite you into our creative world, where we share our passion for pet portraiture, art, and the journey that brought us here. If you love animals, art, and behind-the-scenes insights, you’re in the right place!
Our Journey into Pet Portraits
We are Melanie and Nicholas, the artists behind Melanie & Nicholas Pet Portraits. Our journey began years ago when we met at art college, drawn together by our love for animals and our shared desire to capture their unique personalities on canvas.
Melanie’s first pet portrait commission came in 1994 while still at college, and when the owner was moved to tears upon seeing the artwork, she knew she had found her calling. By 1997, we officially launched our pet portrait business, and we’ve been creating beautiful, lifelike pet portraits ever since!
Blogging Since 2005 – A New Chapter
If you’ve followed us for a while, you may know that we’ve been blogging about our pet portrait journey for nearly two decades. Unfortunately, due to a technical issue with our previous blog, we lost many of our past posts, but we’re embracing this fresh start with our brand-new Melanie & Nicholas ‘Behind The Scenes’ Blog!
We were early adopters of blogging, starting in 2005 after a friend introduced us to the idea in 2004. At the time, we realized it was a fantastic way to connect with pet lovers and prospective clients, allowing us to share our work and the process behind each unique portrait. We hope this new blog will continue to be an inspiring space for fellow artists and pet enthusiasts alike!
Our Art Studio Blog – Pet Portraits in Progress
In January 2002, we started showcasing the stages of our pet portrait commissions online—something that was quite groundbreaking at the time! Nicholas was initially hesitant about sharing unfinished work, as in art school, students rarely revealed works-in-progress. However, times have changed, and now, many artists embrace this approach.
With the launch of our blog, it became even more natural to document our creative process as a visual diary. We love that our readers can follow along as a painting or drawing evolves from sketch to finished portrait!
The Early Days of Our Pet Portrait Website
We were ready to dive into the digital world as soon as the internet became widely available. Back in 2001, when most people were still getting used to the idea of having an online presence. We created our first website, Artists At Home, to promote a Learn to Draw and Paint course.
A year later, in 2002, we launched our first dedicated pet portrait website under the name Red Kite Studios, inspired by the beautiful Red Kites soaring over our home in Wales. However, we quickly realized that not everyone knew what a Red Kite was! So in 2003, we opted for a more descriptive domain: www.pet-portrait-artist.com.
After some challenges with our hosting provider, we transitioned in 2005 to www.pet-portraitartists.com. This has remained our online home ever since! It’s fascinating to look back at how much websites have evolved. Our earliest versions now seem ancient, but they laid the foundation for what we have today.
Our Artistic Adventure Continues
Since moving to our cozy cottage in 2007, we’ve continued to innovate and refine our pet portrait business. We now have two websites where you can explore our work. Plus of course, this blog where we share behind-the-scenes stories, insights, and even a glimpse into our life in Wales with our Tibetan Terrier, Lily, and our garden hens!
We’d love for you to join us on this journey. Subscribe to our blog and follow along as we continue creating heartfelt pet portraits for clients worldwide. And, as always, we love hearing from you—feel free to leave a comment or reach out anytime!
Melanie, Nicholas & Lily the Tibetan Terrier
Melanie & Nicholas Pet Portraits
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