Last week’s winner was Janine who submitted a photo of her baby girl, Juliet, shown above next to her completed portrait. I chose Juliet purely for selfish reasons, it’s a gorgeous photo of a gorgeous baby with gorgeous and HUGE eyes. I could not deny my inner artistic desire to draw this baby. That’s my story – and I’m sticking to it!
A note on framing for portrait winners: I recommend the Nielsen Bainbridge Archival Gallery Frame, available through Dick Blick.
Each Monday, I post the weekly Call for Entries along with the previous weeks completed portrait (above). I may change the subject theme each week, or leave the theme open, so please pay close attention to the details in each announcement.
Entries will be accepted through Friday afternoon around 4PM CST, at which time I will close comments and select one winner from the entries received. I’ll announce the winner on Saturday and post the completed portrait with the following week’s Giveaway announcement.
Qualified entries will include a valid e-mail address, and the comment should include one link to a photograph owned/taken by the entrant. If you do not have a place to upload photos to link one, you can e-mail it to gallery *at* intricateart dot-com. Your entry, however, should be included in the comment section below, with your story – should you choose to include one.
The Selection Process: In case you’re curious, I’ll share my little artsy process in selecting the winner. First – I do not read any entries at all during the week. I do not read them because I don’t want anyone’s entries to have any more time than any others to settle in my creative brain. At the end of the week, I close comments. When I sit down to go through all of the entries, I read the story first, and open the photo link in a new window. When I finish reading, I flip over to the photo and my initial reaction is what I go by.
If your entry is not chosen, you may enter again. I encourage you to include a short story with your entry.
WEEK 8 : CALL FOR ENTRIES
Theme
- : Open (1 or 2 subject – people or pets)
Deadline
- : Friday, February 20, 2009 (4pm CST)
To Enter
- : Leave a comment, include a link to your photo. For e-mail submissions, leave a comment with your story as your entry, attach your photo to an e-mail separately, and send to gallery *at* intricateart dot-com.
Note: *G* Rating only
Your challenge? To inspire me! Choose your photo wisely – I will select a winner based on how the photo and/or story moves me.
Good luck!!
Put this button on your blog to remind yourself to enter each week!
Link it to:
http://intricateart.com/browse/blog/getting-creative/graphite-portrait-giveaway/
Don’t want to wait? Commission your own 5×7 graphite custom portrait
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{22 Comments}
YES, This is a gorgeous baby but honestly what struck me most about this drawing was her hand, for some reason. It was so detailed and really cool looking!
I thought the same thing as Karen! Brilliant portrait, but her little hand just seems so alive.
Beautiful job!!!! :thumbsup:
Ohhh It’s my baby girl!! The potrait looks just beautiful! I love how detailed it is and how you did all of her tiny little hairs. Even her eyelashes look perfect! Thanks so much for choosing her picture! I’m so excited! My whole family will just flip when they see this!
Thanks again!!
Janine
What a beautiful graphite transformation! I cannot begin to imagine what it feels like to have such a talent! It is truly incredible!
How can you be this good all the time? How? HOW???
Truly wonderful. Congrats, Janine!
My daughter dream is to someday be a model, she gets discouraged because she think she is too short. She is very beautiful. I would love to see a Graphite Portrait of her beauty.
I emailed her photo to the gallery
“Shay Betts”
Here’s My little Avery! Hope she gets chosen! Thanks for the opportunity… Janine, Your daughter is beautiful!
http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r135/mditzzy2008/100_6310.jpg
Absolutely gorgeous! The baby and the drawing. You did a wonderful job.
I’m leaving a comment for a chance to get my mom a portrait of her dog, Sophie. You can find pictures of her in this post I made for mom & Sophie. And there’s a few more pictures I snagged from mom’s collection here.
Thanks!
That little baby’s eye, amazing.. wow.. you nailed her.
This week I am entering Brandie again, my mom’s dog. This little girl chose my mom.. she did. We were looking for a new puppy as my dad had passed away in November of 2004 and then shortly after in 2005, my mom’s beloved Zoe died as her kidneys never developed. Little Zoe didn’t live much past 1 year. When it was time, my mom decided she did not want another Shih Tzu but wanted a pug. So we searched and searched.. expensive little critters. we finally found someone who had pugs nearby. We went to their house and Zoe ran right up to my mom and it was a done deal. As she lay sleeping, it comes to mind that life does go on and brings new joy, and how better can it get with a new life, whether it be canine or human baby. This dog has made us laugh and has brought us a lot of joy. I believe that pugs have a unique sight to see things that no other dog can. This little girl will sit and watch a movie with you, the Kings basketball games that mom dearly loves and especially any movie with any kind of animal in it. It is so funny to see her get so excited at just the right parts and gets really irritated if the other dogs bother her at her TV time. When you talk to her, she really listens.. she will cock her head to the side and look at you with utmost understanding.
Here she was the day we brought her home to stay with her new mom.
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/33/38784724_4c9acf7df6_o.jpg
Sue
Very cute! I’ve got a grand-baby on the way; I can’t wait!!!
Wow you are so right, what a gorgeous baby girl pic, lol I would have been drawn to those eyes as well, you have done a fabulous job as always, you are so talented. Cheers Debra (Australia)
What beautiful work! Here’s my little girl.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v515/hvnlydevil/gang.jpg
Yep! It’s me again! Here is the link to the photo…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nishona/3198963489/
This is Ratchet, he is a 3 year old Parsons jack Russel Terrier and Hank my 8 year old Beagle… The story behind us getting Ratchet is very bitter sweet. 4 years ago I had a jack Russel named Snoopy, Snoopy was only 10 months old when he bolted past my son through my front door and he ran out in the street and was hit by a car, a few hours later her died. We were completely devastated! About a week later a friend told us about a local breeder who had some puppies for sale, he was having a hard time selling them and was considering taking the remaining two puppies to a local shelter because he was getting ready to move and couldn’t keep them. We were hesitant, did we really want a new dog when our little baby had just recently died??? We decided to go and see the puppies. When we arrived at the breeders house there were 2 puppies, a male and a female.. there were people there purchasing the female and they were pretty much walking out the door with her when we arrived.. the male (ratchet) saw me and started jumping up on the side of the small pen he was in… it was all over at that point! We took him home and I have to say he was my salvation! I must admit I felt some guilt about getting a new puppy so soon after my other dog had passed away, it almost felt like I was trying to replace him, I soon got over that feeling… for having Ratchet helped me to get over the devastating loss of snoopy… every time I felt sad over Snoopy I would pick Ratchet up and snuggle with him and it would help me to feel better. I know that a loved pup can never be replaced but even though he did move on to the rainbow bridge to wait for me life has to go on and there are so many dogs out there who are alive and need our love.
The story of how we got Hank is interesting as well… We were living on a military base about 6 years ago… we had some neighbors behind us who had a beagle (hank). hank used to be tied up in their back yard in 105 degree heat with no shade or water… I had pretty much made up my mind if I saw him tied up in their backyard like that again i was going to confront them, soon after I made this decision my son came into my room and looked out my window and he asked me “Who’s dog is that?” I had no clue what he was talking about so I looked out the sliding door and there was a VERY muddy beagle looking back at me.. it seems he had dug a hole under our fence and he seemed to be saying “Hi, I am bored and hot and thirsty at my house, do your dogs want to play?” Well one thing led to another and I gently suggested to hank’s owners that we would LOVE to watch him while they were at work every day, this way he would 1. get to play all day and 2. he would have ample water and food and be able to stay cool inside my house… they agreed. The wife loved Hank but the husband didn’t think he was a “Macho” enough dog for him… it got to where hank spent more and more time over at our house, his owners finally realized how happy he was with us so they gave him to us for Christmas! It was a great day!
I would love to have you do this picture, it represents a rare moment of calm between Ratchet and Hank, Ratchet pretty much torments Hank day in and day out, poor hank will not fight back, not much you can do
in those situations though.
Thanks!
My best buddy of almost 18 years crossed the Rainbow Bridge just about a year ago. I miss her terribly:
http://getonthe.blogspot.com/2008/03/grand-champion-galidorns-marilyn-monrex.html
She was a girlie girl, that’s for sure.
During the past 18 years, God sent me numerous cats and one dog. He sent them to me because ‘they’ needed ‘me’. They needed a lifetime home, someone to love and take care of them. Today I share my home with 11 cats and one dog – most who are quite elderly and sick. My days are filled giving special care, special food, medication, insulin and fluids, cleaning litter boxes, wiping up throw up, washing a zillion cat beds, brushing fur and clipping claws. It’s crazy busy, not to mention working full time, taking care of a house and a husband. So………when I another stray showed up outside a few months ago, I wondered what I would do. I had room in my heart but not in my day or budget. But after seeing this skinny, dirty, sick cat in need-I had to at least put food out. I was secretly hoping one of the neighbors would step. Day after day, this cat came back. His personality grew on me. I realized he was a very sick cat and decided I could not turn my back on him. So off to the vet we went. Lola now lives with us and he is the light of my life. He has gained weight and even though he has Aids, kidney disease, heart disease and anemia, he is thriving. He only wants to be loved. He will sit in your lap until you ‘remove’ him. He is like “velcro’. And then I realized…God sent me my other cats because they needed me. But God sent Lola to me because ‘I’ needed ‘him’. Lola calms me. He relaxes me. He fills my heart with joy. God knew the cats he peviously sent me would live long and my life would get crazy. So he sent me Lola as a ‘thank you’. I love all my cats and they all have a very special place in my heart. But there is something very unique and very special about Lola. He is my rock. He melts my heart. And I am so thankful that God would not take no for an answer. Here is my Lola -again. (I thought he was a she, hence the name).
Hi Leanne!
Since it can be a 2 subject portrait this week, I’m happily re-submitting my entry for my niece Sarah… :love:
Sarah’s Christmas Morning Surprise from Greg
He told her he had a present in the backyard for her, so everyone headed out there to see what it was. Here’s the BIG moment in her own words on their wedding blog: “I saw the big box and thought maybe it was a surf board or something he might have built for me! (sidebar, we live in So Cal) So I open it and its a full-length mirror… ok… it had a small poem and pictures taped on it that immediately caught my eye. As I’m looking in the mirror at the items, I see his reflection behind me go down on one knee. I turn around and he has a ring! AHHH!! I screamed :yahoo: and then we were engaged!”
Their huge, beaming smiles say it all – two young people blessed in love & happiness, full of hopes & dreams – a true inspiration and one of our most memorable Christmas mornings ever!
They just announced their Wedding Date will be on June 5, 2010 and will be having an Engagement/Graduation Party this May when Sarah graduates from Point Loma University. I would love to present them with your beautiful drawing as a memory of the day they agreed to join their lives as one so that they may look at it through the years and always remember how happy they were that special Christmas morning…
Thanks very much for the opportunity to once again inspire everyone! ~Dee
** Emailed photo to the Gallery **
Wow, what wonderful talent. This would be great for our engagement photo for our upcoming wedding!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/maggs813/3055584553/
My two children a 2 peas in a pod when it comes to their looks. As babies, they looked almost exactly the same. They have the most beautiful brown eyes and the same features.
When it comes to personalities, they are day and night. My son, Austin is the calm, caring, and patient one. My daughter, Emma is the animated drama “girl” who challenges our patience everyday. The one thing that never changes is their love for each other. They are equally protective of each other and hug and kiss each other good night and throughout the day.
In this picture, the outlines of their heads (my son likes to be close to her in photos) are in the shape of a heart. I had a hard time picking a photo for this week, but I always come back to this one. It is one of my favorites because they both have a natural smile showing, their eyes are sparkling, and it shows their closeness!
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30197802&l=a9383&id=1196950165
Thanks for your entries this week!! I’ll post the winner this weekend!
[…] Last week’s winner was Dee with a story of a Christmas Morning Surprise given to her niece, Sarah. Greg’s creative wedding proposal made me sniffle in true girly-girl form, and the photo she submitted really conveys the happiness and promise of a young couple in love. I wish Sarah & Greg all the best!! […]
[…] Read Dee’s story here. Next Project » […]
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