House portrait in pen and ink - finished for Christmas

I have completed the first of two house portrait commissions that I am doing for Christmas this year. This is done in pen and ink on Fabriano Artistico Bright White 140 lb hot press paper. It's approximately 14 inches wide and 11 inches tall, and will be put into a 20 x 16 double black conservation mat.

One of the challenges of this portrait was the fact that the home is on a larger piece of land with a long, tree-lined driveway. If you took the long view to include the surrounding driveway and barns, the house would end up being rather tiny. So as the client and I discussed different options, we ultimately agreed that this cropped view would be best. It includes part of the long drive, but gives a closer view of the house. I also did something a little different and included the homeowner's three dogs in the driveway, as they are an integral part of the landscape and family.

Portrait of two dogs in graphite

This is a commission that I recently completed of two dogs. The final drawing is about 11 X 14. I did this on hot press watercolor paper and used a mechanical pencil. I found that I worked slowly in layers of graphite, first with a rough sketch and then making sure I got the eyes and features correct before filling in the detail of the fur. I blended as I went using the pencil, rather than a blending stomp or other tool. I think that the final version looks 'rougher' to me than other graphite pet portraits I have seen, but in the end, I really like the effect and think that both dogs turned out very well.