Custom Portraits Online by Miranda Aschenbrenner

This was another one of my Christmas portraits that I could’t post until after Christmas. I wouldn’t want to give away the surprise!

Here is my last Christmas portrait of the year! I’ve been really busy this year with quite a few commissions, not to mention my own projects. I love giving art as a gift simply because it can be so much more personal than something you buy from the store.

This portrait was commissioned by Ryan as a gift to his new wife. They were married earlier this year. This piece was a pleasure to draw, not only becuase they are such a good looking couple, but because Ryan provided me with excellent photos.

The best part is that Ryan lives about 2200 miles away from me! He came across my website, loved my work and decided to get a drawing done. It’s still a bit unbelievable to me that I am able to reach so many people around the world.

Merry Christmas to you all!

Two Shelties, pencil on paper, 8×10″

This portrait was done for Michelle, who I have done commissions for several times before. This particular pencil drawing was commissioned as a Christmas gift for her boyfriend’s parents.

These two beautiful shelties are the parents’ dogs. The one lying down is Brady and apparently, he is “full of piss and vinegar.” Standing over Brady is Wally, the older and more mature of the two.

These guys were a pleasure to draw. I am finding that I really enjoy drawing dogs!

Grain Elevator, pencil on paper, 10×20″

When Kathy first approached me about the possibility of doing a prairie scene featuring grain elevators, I was really excited. Here was a chance to do something completely different!

Kathy’s father’s company built many of the grain elevators in the prairie provinces of Canada. In spite of this, they didn’t have a single good picture that featured his work. Kathy wanted an image that would portray the beauty of the scenery as well as the grain elevators.

This drawing draws from a number of different references and inspirations. It’s a combination of four different photos and is a great way to preserve the family’s heritage and contribution to history.

Yet another dog!

Linda commissioned this portrait of her black lab cross. She wanted to get a portrait done because her poor dog was so afraid of cameras, Linda didn’t have any decent photos of her. The dog is getting older and Linda wanted to make sure she had a picture to remember her by.

This portrait was drawn from two photos, one for the face, and a second one for the ears (which got cut off in the first photo).

I am really enjoying drawing dogs. It has been an interesting change of pace from people and I have learned so much about drawing realistic hair just from the past two commissions. The direction of hair growth is so complicated, and so essential!