Sketch for Pastel Painting of Yorkshire Terrier

Yorkshire Terrier sitting on antique chair.
Charcoal sketch underdrawing. 11"x14"

Initially I did a few thumbnail sketches of this dog in various settings, including a flower garden, before choosing this ornate antique chair as the perfect backdrop.

At barely 9 inches tall and weighing about 5 pounds, this toy dog seems oblivious to her small size. Judging by her silky coat and well kept appearance, it is easy to imagine that she is one pampered dog! Do I detect a trace of mischief behind that sweet face?

Working on a mid-toned sanded pastel paper, I used vine charcoal to sketch the basic proportions and establish the dark values. I blocked in the background using deep red, hard pastel to help define the outline of the chair. And I lightly roughed in some of the floral pattern of the chair upholstery using a soft red pastel pencil. Next I plan to spray the sketch with workable fixative, before proceeding to the painting stage. When painting in pastel I generally do not spray successive layers, as fixative tends to deaden the colors.

At any given time I may have several pastel or oil paintings in progress, as well as preparatory sketches and commissioned portraits of dogs, horses, cats and people. It's always fun, and interesting!