Bring Animals to Life on Canvas: Tips & Techniques for Animal Art Contest

Since time immemorial, animals have been showcased through art. Whether you are painting a racing cheetah, a playful kitten, or an exotic bird, you will need a certain amount of skill, patience, and a deep understanding of the anatomy and movement of animals while bringing them to life on canvas. If you are fond of paintings of animals or sculpting animal figures, get your art a spotlight while participating in an animal art contest by some reputed organizations like TERAVARNA. No matter if it’s a photography art contest, or you are preparing for an animal drawing competition, mastering the techniques of this art can set your work apart. In this blog, we will explore the best ways and some essential tips to help you create stunning dog portrait painting or an incredible elephant artwork and a lot more! So, stay tuned!

Your Knowledge of Animal Anatomy and Structure Matters!

Before you start with your art materials and dive into creating stunning animal art, understanding their anatomy and skeletal structure is crucial. It is always helpful to notice how animals move, and how light plays an important role in the composition, as the light and shadow of their body will help you create more realistic depictions.

Pro Tips:

• Better to study real life animals and reference images to create convincing portrayals.

• Start from the basic shapes like, ovals, circles, and rectangles to outline the animal you are creating and go on adding details.

• While you sketch, it’s advisable to break down the complex structures into simpler forms. 

What is the Best Medium for Painting of Animals: Know Here!

Are you comfortable with watercolors, or oil paintings or acrylic? The choice of medium can greatly impact your paintings for animals and how you turn them into master creations. Every medium has its own pros and cons:

• Watercolors: For fur and feathers, make soft and flowing effects perfect with watercolors.

• Acrylics: The medium of acrylic is best suited for beginners, as the colors dry quickly, allowing space for layering.

• Oil Painting: Requires a certain amount of experience to bring out the rich textures and blending, but the colors take longer time to dry.

• Pencils and Pastels: Intrigued to sketch animals? This is best for adding intricate details and texture to your portraits of fauna.

Choose the Right Colors & Blending Techniques

If you wish to get your colorful animal painting a kudo from the contest jurors, you have to plan your color palette accordingly. Choosing the right color schemes and blending techniques matter for a great portrayal. To add more realistic touches to these living and breathing creatures, paint them in shades of grey, not only black, brown, or white; paint their fur, feathers, and scales with subtle color variations to bring them to life.

Techniques:

• Complementary colors help enhance the vibrancy of the animal portraits.

• While doing the fur or feathers, use the technique of layering with different hues to bring more realism in art.

• Sometimes, working with your fingers to blend colors works wonders! Try soft blending techniques with dry brushes to create smooth transitions.

How to Create Realistic Fur, Feathers, and Textures

Wish to paint like a pro? You have to focus more on the textures of an animal’s skin, fur, or feathers – that will make the paintings lifelike. You can achieve the results following these easy tips:

Feathers:

• While painting feathers, start from the base colors, and then move with the details with thin, controlled strokes.

• You can create a three-dimensional effect while highlighting individual feathers.

Scales & Skin:

• While painting reptiles and amphibians, use color dabbing techniques.

• For the scales and skin, add more depth and dimension with highlighting areas and shadows. 

Fur:

• Use small, quick strokes to create the illusion of hair.

• To be realistic, follow the natural direction of fur growth.

• To add depth, use layers of light and dark shades.

Storytelling through Expression and Personality: Really Matters for Animal Art Contest

Portraying animals is not an easy job and it requires the act of storytelling through the emotions of the ones you are presenting. That is why paintings of animals require capturing their unique expressions through different body parts and sense organs.

The Important Areas to Tap the Expressions:

• Eyes: Eyes are the windows to our souls – that’s exactly for animals. Use highlights to make them appear glossy.

• Muzzle and Nose: These are the areas to add subtle shading for creating depth.

• Personality through Posture and Movement: You have to study the animals thoroughly before you can come up with credible portrayals of their personality.

Create Diverse Backgrounds and Animal Habitats

Creating dynamic and well-thought-out backgrounds for an animal art contest can make a huge impact on your portrayals.

• Natural Settings: Choose expanse of grasslands, shadiness of forests, or oceans to add context.

• Abstract Backgrounds: Sometimes bold and abstract textures as backgrounds can make your animal stand out.

• Minimalist Approach: Even you can try a minimalist background with a simple gradient or light wash to keep the focus on the animal.

Rules to Participate in an Animal Art Contest or Animal Drawing Competition

While you think of entering an animal art contest or an animal drawing competition organized by a prestigious gallery like TERAVARNA, take these events as a stepping stone for success and exposure to a broader viewer base, receive genuine feedback, and even win lucrative cash prizes!

How to Go about the Shows:

• Adhere to the contest rules carefully and follow the submission guidelines.

• Select your animal muse that resonates with the theme of the competition.

• Always use high-quality materials for a professional finish.

• Judges will always look for detailed work, as they often seek precision and creativity.

How to Improve Your Skills in this Art:  

Mastering the art is not a child’s play. Like any form of art, mastering the techniques takes time and practice. Here are some of the proven ways to scale up your skills:

• Practice makes perfect: Drawing and sketching regularly from different angles can help.

• Paintings of animals from real life: You can visit zoos or farms to observe real animals.

• Art Community Networking: Connect with fellow artists for inspiration and feedback.

• Taking Online Classes: There are online and offline tutorials to help refine your skills.

Take Your Animal Art to the Next Level

You know how satisfying it feels to bring animals to life on canvas or captured through lens as an artist! By mastering anatomy, choosing the right materials, experimenting with colors, and paying attention to detail, you can create stunning colorful animal paintings or animal photographs, sculptures, or digital arts that will captivate viewers. If you have already experienced working with an esteemed online gallery like TERAVARNA, you know how rewarding an animal art contest can be. It will always fuel your ego to get your art hung on the gallery wall! So, get on with these easy tips and take your art to the next level.

Paint your passion now!