The French Batdog
WATERCOLOR
• 2012 •
The French Batdog was inspired by my foster dog turned forever fur baby, Zepplin.
He was many things: he was the puking dog with a one-of-a-kind walk, his head was permanently tilted to the left, he sounded like a scary monster with every breath, and his butt was bald with an off-center corkscrew tail. My baby was perfectly imperfect.
I created this artwork because of Zepplin and donated the use of it to the rescue that he came from. The French Bulldog Rescue Network, FBRN, is a hard-working and extremely dedicated rescue that goes out of its way and beyond to care for dogs that might otherwise be euthanized or live a less-than-stellar life.
If you would like to read more about the FBRN, adopt a French Bulldog, become one of its dedicated volunteers, or donate, go to:
Prints of the French Batdog may be purchased in our store with 10% of the profits going to the FBRN.
The Process
The rough sketch
The original sketch is small (just over 1 x 1”) and very tight line-wise. Sometimes I start out with a quite a few rough sketches to get an idea of how I want it to look, but at other times, as in this sketch, I got it right the first time.
The rough line drawing
This is the "rough" line drawing. From this, I trace the image with graphite paper onto the watercolor paper.
Side note: I don't use traditional watercolor paper. I use Strathmore 500 Series Bristol 4-ply paper. I love the smooth surface compared to traditional watercolor paper.
Work in progress
I do a lot of layering with my watercolors. This image is before the really fun part begins - the fur! It may look like a lot of work but it's actually quite therapeutic.
A Donation to the FBRN
I created various versions based off of the original art of the French Batdog for the FBRN to use for their fundraising events.
The images below are two examples that were offered on www.zazzle.com. They were printed on a wide variety of items such as t-shirts, mugs, and pillows.
I'm a French Batdog!
