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Useful tips for pet portrait painting

Making your own paint

It is possible, and quite easy, for the pet portrait artist to make their own paint. One of the easiest forms of paint to make yourself is egg tempera, a medium that has a long history in art and if used on a properly prepared ground can be a better lasting medium than oils. The finished paint can be thinned with water and dries very quickly to matt or semi-matt finish. Egg tempera is quite brittle when dried so needs a stiff support to avoid cracking, but if precautions are taken, tempera is a very stable medium.

Tempera is not capable of great depth but it lends itself to a linear style and works best when compositions are based on a well executed drawing.

Process for making egg tempera.

Start by creating a pigment paste, this is done by putting dry pigment into a small jar, adding enough distilled water to make a thick paste. The quantity will vary from colour to colour as each will have a different degree of absorbency. Put the top on the jar and shake vigourously. This pigment paste can then be kept until you need it.

To make up the required amount of paint, crack an egg and separate the yolk. Dry the yolk sac by rolling around in the hand or absorbent paper. Hold the yolk and cut the sac with a scalpel, letting the liquid run into a glass jar. Whilst stirring add distilled water until the consistency of thin cream is achieved. Gradually work small amounts of the egg mixture into the pigment paste on a flat piece of marble or glass using a palette knife until the desired consistency is achieved. To test the binding power of the paint, use a brush to apply a small amount to a piece of glass, when dry, peel it off with the palette knife. If it is ready it will come off as a skin, if it crumbles, add more egg.

As egg is the binder used here, it cannot be kept for any length of time, as it will putrefy. So it is always best to make the paints as and when you need it.