Welcome to Nicholas’ latest cat pet portraits in oils. This is an 18 x 14 inches oil painting completed by Nicholas on Italian Linen canvas commissioned as a surprise gift for Christmas. I think the recipient is going to be delighted! Client Barrie commissioned the oil painting as sadly Tia is no longer with us, so this oil painting will be a most beautiful Christmas gift for the recipient. I know that there will be a few tears shed.
Our clients asked us to have the painting framed and ready to display so that they could wrap it up and keep it ready for the big day. The portrait was framed in our Traditional Flat frame and has been a long time favourite of ours. The colours work so well with Tia, especially the slip. Scroll down the page to see photos. You can see a final scan and detail below too.
Barrie and his wife Barbara visited our studio to collect the painting in person and it was really lovely to meet them. Barrie sent the email below when he saw the final scan. They were even more thrilled when they saw the portrait and said it was ‘Just like Tia’!
Hi Melanie and Nicholas,
The portrait captures the essential Tia to perfection. Nicholas, your work has not exceeded our expectations as our knowledge of your work has led to those expectations being very high in the first place. Thank you. Change not a jot or tittle…..Claire will see, in the portrait, her Tia in all her wistful glory…..
Our highest regards,
Barbara and Barrie Trumper.
Cat Pet Portraits in Oils – With Brushes
Tia’s portrait was hand painted and as you can see from the photos below, Nicholas’ brush strokes are very fine. I took a few photos of the painting while he was adding the very final touches. The camera has picked up the canvas and painting well, showing how beautiful the blacks are around Tia’s eyes.
Taking photos like these really adds scale to the painting. This is a really lovely size painting for Tia and we hope the recipient will be thrilled with the finished piece.
As you can see there is more fine detail in the cat’s face, compared with the body fur. This is so that the face is in full focus and other details don’t draw the eye away. The other areas must complement it, still be detailed but slightly out of focus to bring the whole painting together.
Cat Pet Portraits in Oils – Photos
Nicholas paints using relatively small paint brushes to create his paintings. You can see a two of them on the painting below. These are brand new brushes, hence why they look so clean! Nicholas loves to use Rosemaries brushes and uses these along with some Davinci Nova brushes for his oil paintings. They are fabulous quality.
The oil painting was photographed here in our studio as soon as it was complete. We often take photos of the portraits from an angle so that our clients can see them in more detail. I feel that it creates a very dynamic photo and allows the viewer to see how three dimensional the paintings are and how much depth they have.
Adding the brushes into the photo also add scale to the piece. We sometimes take photos of Nicholas’ hand, especially when he is capturing the final details of the painting, like the whiskers. That’s only if I can catch him at his easel doing so! Thankfully I was able to here, but it doesn’t always happen! He paints while I draw in the studio, so quite often I miss the finishing touches and before I know it, he exclaims that he is complete and to come and see!
You can see that Nicholas has added quite a bit of detail to the paws and they really look like they are sitting on the carpet. The shadows under the paws on the carpet are so important and they really create a very three dimensional effect. The fur looks so soft!
Cat Pet Portraits in Oils – Framed
Our clients chose to have our framer to frame the oil painting for them. Barrie requested the Traditional Flat frame and we feel that the colours and tones work beautifully with Tia. Initially choosing a frame from our website, Barry was concerned that the brown hues of the frame would be too dark. Every frame is slightly different, especially being a natural wood product. The tones of the moulding were actually slightly lighter and richer in tone than we have had previously – which was perfect! Doesn’t the linen slip work really well!
Choosing the right frame for your portrait is really important, it has to compliment it, not only the shape but the colours too. When you take one of our oil paintings to a framer, if they need any help or advice they can always contact us.
Framers are usually very experienced with framing canvases and so should give you all of the options from inner slips to a good choice of mouldings. They will often hold the mouldings next to the painting for you to see. They should also have a good eye for colour and what would work well, so go with their guidance as they usually know best!
Again, if you need any advice from us, we are only an email or a message away. We are always happy to help give advice if you need it.
If you would like a Cat Pet Portraits in Oils similar to Barry, please do let us know. We would love to work with you on your own portrait. Message us via WhatsApp or contact us via our website, we are looking forward to creating a cat portrait for you and your family.
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Your cat portraits are absolutely dazzling!
Thank you so much Kathleen. Tia was a lovely commission, Nicholas thoroughly enjoyed painting her and the clients even came to collect the portrait. Wonderful! Melanie x