Today I am asking – Will your pet’s AI portrait still matter in 30 years? I have been pondering this particular question since a repeat client commissioned me earlier this year… nearly 30 years later. So my question is…. if you buy an AI generated or digital pet portrait… will you still love it many years later, like my client still loves her traditional painting I created for her, 28 years ago?
AI portraits are everywhere now. You have probably seen them, you may have even ordered one. Pop your pet’s photo into an app or online and within seconds you have something that looks like a painted portrait. I think we have all asked ChatGPT to make us a funny image or two of our pets and family. Some of them are genuinely impressive and I completely understand the appeal.
We use AI tools ourselves for mock ups and designs. It can help us extend a cropped tail, remove a collar or harness, remove tack on a horse, put two pets from separate photos into the same scene. All done so that our clients can see exactly what their finished portrait might look like before we begin. We can then use this reference to work from. It saves time and it improves what we can show people. I’ve written about that in more detail in this earlier post.
So this isn’t about AI being bad. It’s a tool, like the daylight lamps we use to work in the evenings, or the fast-drying mediums Nicholas uses in his oil painting when he is on a tight deadline. Technology moves fast and as artists we are always open to new ideas and are mostly happy to move with the times. But I do wonder about the longevity of all these AI paintings and drawings people are creating or printing.
A wonderful message…
As I mentioned at the start of this blog post, a client got in touch to commission a portrait, a gift for her daughter-in-law of a 16 year old Jack Russell called Meg. A lovely enquiry and she sent beautiful photos. But what stopped me in my tracks was what she said next:
“I’ve attached a picture of the stunning painting that you did in 1997 of my springer spaniel, which has brought me no end of pleasure over the years.”
My client even sent a photo of the back of that original portrait, showing the details written in pencil at the time. The dog’s name. The dates. The occasion. A 36th birthday present, given in May 1997. My lovely client has had her portrait, treasured and on display for 28 years. And now my client has returned for another one.
There are probably some raised eyebrows hearing that I was working as a pet portrait artist in 1997 as it seems so long ago. I was actually painting back then, I have used all of the media in the past, but I just prefer pencil now. 1997 was genuinely prehistoric to today’s standards. There were no smartphones, no social media and no AI. Much simpler times! But drawings don’t change and this is the new drawing I did for my lovely client.
Wow, amazing, absolutely perfect. Couldn’t be more pleased. You have captured Meg perfectly. Thanks Melanie. So thrilled that I asked you to do this. Xx.
Hi Melanie, Brig is thrilled to bits with Meg’s portrait. We all absolutely love it. Thank you so so much xx.
Will your pet’s AI portrait still matter in 30 years?
But am I right in thinking, no AI image made in 2026 is going to bring someone back to the same AI company in say 2055? Not because the images aren’t good, some of them genuinely are. They exist to delight, to share, to raise a smile for a moment. And that’s perfectly fine, for what they are. The thing is, surely there’s a real difference between an image created by a computer and one by a human? My client above has a story to tell about both portraits and the time that has gone in between.
An AI pet portrait lives on your phone, or someone prints it. You might even frame it for your wall, but it didn’t really come from anywhere. Nobody sat with your pet’s photograph and made careful decisions about it. For instance, studied your dogs eyes, the way one ear is slightly higher than the other, the thing that made your dog your dog and not just any dog. It was generated. Quickly, cleverly, but generated.
A hand drawn or hand painted portrait is different from the very first moment. Both Nicholas and I spend time looking at your photographs, working out how we will draw or paint them, noticing all of the little things. All before we even pick up a pencil or a brush.
Pet Portrait Example of Longevity
The portrait below is a large pencil of four English Setters all drawn from separate photos. A lot of work goes into something like this, even before I put pencil to paper. Deciding on the photo of each dog, making sure they sit well together and are all at the right eye level. Then there is the human touch when drawing, the slight imperfections, the spark of a line that just works, the slight altering of a dark areas to allow a light area to shine. So many things that make a humans work utterly unique and alive.
My client came to visit us to collect the drawing below, as it was quite large and he wanted to meet us. You can read a testimonial below when he returned home and gave the portrait to his wife.
Morning Melanie
Only to say a huge thank you for yesterday – it was such a pleasure to meet you and Nicholas in your lovely home and to see your brilliant studio ! What a great set up you have ! It was great to have a chat and learn a little about your life in that lovely corner of Wales.
I got home and needless to say Annabel had no idea of what I was up to and was suitably ‘moved’ by the extraordinary work you have created. She genuinely couldn’t take her eyes of it and was in awe of how you have captured their individuality in every way.
It really is the most lovely work – It will sit ( once framed ) in pride of place and will install memories for ever for us. I cannot thank you enough – suffice to say that I would like at some point to ask you to do another of our lovely retriever so I will be in touch in due course !
With Kindest Regards
Andrew
We love meeting our clients. We work with people from all over the world so we don’t get to meet clients that often, so it’s always lovely when they can visit. Clients have even called in to see us when they were travelling from the USA, which was amazing. Andrew sent us a photo of his drawing in pride of place in their office. Somewhere they can see the dogs everyday. Happy memories.
What Happens to a Portrait Over Time
When a portrait is finished and displayed on a wall, it becomes something else again. It becomes part of the house. It gets pointed out to visitors. Travels when families move home. It gets inherited. I know this because clients tell us, sometimes a portrait we made years ago has passed from one generation to the next. It gets written on the back in pencil, with a date and a name and an occasion because it matters enough to record.
I don’t think an AI image does that. Not yet, and I’d argue not ever, because that weight, that meaning, doesn’t come from the image itself. It comes from the making of it. From the hours spent, the decisions made, the human being on the other side of the work. Just like the portrait of Gabby with her family below. A much loved and cherished member of their family who will never, ever be forgotten. Take a look at more of our amazing photos on our Pet Portraits Reviews page.
Enquiry with AI and digital causing confusion
I received a genuine enquiry a few months ago and it stuck with me. I did actually give them advice in my reply, as it was clear that their bit of research looking for a pet portrait artist had clearly confused them. They asked me … “Would they be receiving original artwork or a digital file?”.
I think my heart sank to start with to wonder….who could visit our website and even consider our work was digital and that they would only receive a digital file? We try really hard on our website to show our process clearly, and that we create everything traditionally by hand.
Hello, I would like to commission a portrait of my girlfriend’s cat, who sadly passed away last month at the age of 15. Could you please let me know your availability, pricing, turnaround time, and what reference photos you would need? I would also like to know whether the original artwork or a high-resolution digital file is included.
My Advice for them…
There are two options in the world of pet portraits in general – original hand created artwork like ours or digital. Original artwork – artists will always send you the actual hand drawn or painted artwork in your hand, for you to frame and display. This is what takes time and why traditional artists are always booked in advance and prices are more expensive.
Digital artists (actually they don’t have to be artists to create digital portraits!!) will create the artwork on the computer or with AI — it will be considerably cheaper and faster since no one hand creates it. You’ll always receive these as a digital file to print at home or use on socials. Or an actual print sent to your address depending on what you choose in their options. You will normally just use a variety of drop downs and order your portrait, with no contact from the owner.
So Which Is Right for You?
It all depends on whether you want something hand curated or a quick lower cost option. My blog post might help guide you – How to commission a pet portrait everything you need to know. If you want a fun image of your pet to use as a phone wallpaper, share with friends, or pop into a card etc an AI app will do that beautifully and instantly. I’m genuinely not here to talk you out of it.
But if you want something that might still be on a wall in thirty years, something that somebody might come back for, the way our lovely client did after nearly three decades, that’s a different thing entirely.
Will your pet’s AI portrait still matter in 30 years?
We hope that our Will your pet’s AI portrait still matter in 30 years blog post perhaps makes things a little clearer. There are always new clients coming along who have never commissioned a portrait before. Understanding the process can be confusing and time consuming with research. I would be interested in your take on the subject, please feel free to leave a comment below!
Will your pet’s AI portrait still matter in 30 years? blog post written by Melanie Phillips and Nicholas Beall – Pet Portraits Since 1997.
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