Some Artists are very prolific and can turn out a painting in a day or a week. These Artists are most apt to be able to sell their originals. There are some Artists such as myself that require time to choose a subject, research and draw preliminary sketches before even starting on a painting that will take 4 to 8 months to create.

My name is L.A. CLINE and for over 40 years I have been painting with pastels. I love the way I can layer the pastels and create the soft magnificent texture of what I paint. First, I choose the subject. This is so very important because I have to love what I am painting since I will be working with that subject for months. My paintings must have an everlasting relevance to capture the beauty of our world for generations to admire.

People ask me why it takes so long?  It take me four weeks to research and then sketch my subject and set up to paint the original.  When you look at my paintings you will understand the complexity of the many 20 or more layers of pastel I apply to build color, texture, likeness.  I paint in the morning, evening, sunny, cloudy, raining days to make sure that the painting will look great in all weather conditions. No over head lighting is needed because the lighting is built in within the layers of pastel over time.

“Tender Moment” is a very emotional and loving painting. Grevy Zebras are on the endangered list because of the their narrow and intricate stripes that reflect a fingerprint for each Zebra while most other species of Zebras have much wider stripes. The Grevy Zebras do not have stripes on their bellies but do have a long stripe from the top of their head to the end of their tail. They have big heads and large round ears and weigh 770lbs to 990lbs and the largest of the three species of Zebras and the most threatened. The Grevy Zebras were named after Jules Grevy the President of France from 1879-1887. They are also referred to as Imperial Zebras.

I was crouching very close to these two Grevy Zebras and was mesmerized for six hours and then the mother laid down as be baby foal moved closer to her. What a moment!!!

This painting took me 5 months to draw and paint. The stripes had to be exact. I used slightly lighter coloration’s of  brown pastels for the young Foal since they are born reddish brown and grow darker as they mature.

For the past 20 or so years I have been working with an expert in Digital Fine Art. I combine this advanced technical process with traditional painting. We work together to digitally scan my original painting making sure to capture the whole look of the colors, contrast,  brightness, texture and the look of pastel.  Since I work on archival heavy cotton Fine Art Water Color paper the Digital paper is the same. It takes 5 or 6 takes sometimes more to make sure the digital image using archival inks is just like the original in every way possible. Every work I create I use museum quality materials.

Once I have my Digital Image it is mounted and I start the process of hand painting the digital image with layers of pastel and sometimes multi-media since I want each Art Collectible to be slightly different. This process takes about three weeks and then I choose incredible frame like this one from Italy with a wooden Silver Leaf frame on the outside and a second Black inner frame.

These Art Collectibles I create are labor intensive however they present themselves as a another beautiful one of  a kind  fine art original.  This “Tender Moment”   has layers of pastel and is framed with an Italian made of  solid wooden brushed light pewter color with black and matching inside frames.  An absolutely gorgeous work of art.

L.A. CLINE

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If you have a Birthday or any special occasion, there would be no substitute for the surprise and pleasure than receiving a beautiful portrait of your pet. When commissioning a custom portrait of your pet, be sure to leave plenty of time before any occasion so the painting will be ready for that special date.

All pets have their own personality and their own special look. Like the faces of people, the faces of pets have their own characteristics that make each pet an individual. It is important for the artist to spend time with you and your pet as to capture the essence of your cherished pet.

Many pet portraits that are commissioned are Memorial pet portraits. These are very special paintings since you mainly have to discuss with the owner the personality and the special details of the beloved pet. As well as, research the breed and have some guide pictures that will help you create an original pet portrait. 

After I finish a pet portrait, my clients usually request a Giclee print of the original pastel painting to put in their office or another room in their home.  The Giclee print is usually smaller than the original and can be given as gifts or made as beautiful note cards for special letters to your friends. A Giclee print is the finest reproduction process that is a close match to the original, and they are very affordable.

Take a look at the Pet Portrait gallery, look at the art and read the Further Detail pages for the back stories of each pastel painting.

Having a pet is a wonderful way to learn all about love.

Written by L.A. Cline, Master Pastel Artist
L.A. Cline, Master Pastel Artist for over 30 years is a professional artist that has been commissioned to create custom pastel paintings of various subject matter from pet portraits, corporate portraits, family portraits, landscape paintings, nature paintings, wildlife paintings, entertainment and sports portrait paintings and so much more.

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Pastel Painting “Tender Moment” L.A. Cline Master Pastel Artist

This pastel painting I have created of two Grevy Zebras experiencing their “Tender Moment” may look finished, it is not.  Now that all the stripes are in place, and the forground and background have been painted the finishing process begins.

It takes many layers of different Pastel color pigments to make the background color complimentary, the stripes the right amount depth of color with contrast and the foreground colors that indicate a base line so that the animals look weighted down on the ground.

The finishing process takes me about a week or more to complete.  This is where I use a magnifying glass to look at all the intricate patterns to make sure they are as they should be.  I will move from right to left looking to correct details and perhaps add a few more.  After I finish this process I look at the painting in all types of lights: morning, noon, evening, sunny and cloudy days and in different rooms, this way the lighting will not be any issue in most every day and evening settings.  I will also finish my spraying so the pastel stays in place.   It’s hard to finish a painting but after working so long with pastels you just know when it’s time to stop and if you know when to stop then you have finished the painting.

This painting will be available as a Fine Art Giclee Print .  The painting reproduction will look exactly like the original pastel  painting and would be a masterpiece work of art for any home or office.  The original painting without a frame measures 33″ Wide X  22 1/2″ High.  The painting reproduction will be very close to those measurments.

One of the main reasons I painted these magnificent animals is for everyone to be aware that Grevy Zebras are an endangered species.  The Grevy Zebras are the largest of the African Zebra’s nearly 7 feet tall with the males weighing 770 to 990 pounds.  Every Grevy Zebra has its own set of identifiing stripes that are individual to each animal.  There are no markings on their bellies and the general characteristics are their: big heads, long necks, large rouneded ears, smaller more delicated striped patterns with more distinction between the black stripes and a stripe that extend from their head main all the way down to their tails.   This species of  Zebras was given as a gift to Jules Grevy the Presdient of the Third Republic Regime of France in 1882.  Hence the species is called, Grevy Zebras.

I  love learning about animals and creating nature paintings of  beautiful Wildlife especially the “Tender Moment” between these two Grevy Zebras.

Written by :  L.A. Cline, Master Pastel Artist

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Using pastels to create the stripes is a time-consuming and intense process.  Many layers of pastel have to be applied to finally get the crisp lines of the stripes. Even the colors have to be built up from medium to dark so that the end color has the layers of color that will give a rich natural look when the painting of the Zebras is finished.

Right now I am very happy to have gotten the mother and her babies face in place.  The face and the legs of these animals are the most complicated areas of the body because of the intricate striped pattern, so to paint this original portrait, moving slowly is key.  While painting this piece, I cannot jump around and paint different areas.  I have to concentrate and do each area next to the most recently completed one, as some stripes connect to others in their overlapping bodies.

As a rule, after one year the dark brown zebra stripes generally turn to the familiar black; however, this mother still has some dark brown on her face and neck, while the rest of her body stripes have already turned to more dark black tones.  Her foal, of course, is mostly dark brown with some areas of black.

As an animal portrait artist, waiting is the game you play when your working with painting animals.  It takes hours until a “Tender Moment” happens.  This one  happened on a hot summers day when the Mother decided to lie down.  The baby had a lower perseptive and they could look into eachother’s eyes as her baby walked over for some mothers milk or maybe for a little loving.

Written by: L.A. Cline, Master Pastel  Artist

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