Tuesday Art Chat with Kerri

Tuesday Art Chat Podcast | Pet Portrait Series – Part 1

Have you ever been asked to create a pet portrait but weren't quite sure where to start? How much should you charge? What if the reference photograph is terrible? And should you take a deposit before you begin?

In this episode of the Tuesday Art Chat Podcast, wildlife and nature artist Kerri Dixon shares her experiences creating commissioned pet portraits, including the lessons she's learnt from years of working with customers.

From a much-loved Labrador painted using a tiny, faded photograph to two cats that are still missing their whiskers more than ten years later, Kerri shares some memorable stories alongside practical advice to help you approach art commissions with confidence.

Whether you're considering your first commission or have already completed a few, this episode will help you understand what's involved in creating artwork for customers while still enjoying the creative process.

• Why you don't have to accept every commission you're offered

• Choosing good reference photographs and knowing when to say no

• What information to collect before starting a pet portrait

• How to price your artwork and value your time

• Taking deposits and setting clear customer expectations

• Why showing customers the ugly stage isn't always a good idea

• Preparing, packaging and delivering your finished artwork

• Using customer testimonials and finished portraits to attract future commissions

• The importance of keeping the joy in your art

This is the first episode in our three-part series about pet portraits and art commissions.

In Part 2, we'll explore how to find customers for your pet portraits, including ways to promote your artwork and attract people who appreciate your skills.

The Creative Barn Membership

Develop your animal drawing skills with step-by-step tutorials in soft pastel, charcoal and graphite.

https://the-creative-barn.newzenler.com

Join Kerri on an Art Retreat in France – October 2027

Imagine spending a wonderful week creating art, learning new techniques and exploring beautiful France with like-minded artists!

We'll also be working on a special pet or animal portrait throughout the week, so you can bring along photographs of a much-loved animal and create something truly personal.

There are still places available!

https://uptrek.com/retreat/animals-objects-and-storytelling-in-soft-pastels-retreat-artist-kerri-dixon-france

Have you ever accepted an art commission? Was it a wonderful experience, or did you learn a few lessons along the way?

I'd love to hear your story!

About Your Host

Kerri Dixon is an Australian wildlife and nature artist and educator who loves helping artists develop their skills, build confidence and rediscover the joy of creating realistic animal art.

Through her Creative Barn Membership, Tuesday Art Chats and art retreats, Kerri brings artists together to learn, create and share their love of art.

Happy creating!

Kerri

Have you ever spent hours adding beautiful details to a wildlife drawing, only to stand back and feel that something just isn't quite right?

Sometimes creating more realistic artwork isn't about adding more detail or buying better pencils. It's about understanding a few important fundamentals that can make all the difference.

In this episode of the Tuesday Art Chat Podcast, wildlife artist and educator Kerri Dixon shares four essential things every wildlife artist should understand to help create more realistic animal drawings and paintings with confidence.

• The secrets to realism: Why realistic wildlife art is about much more than drawing every individual hair or feather.

• Understanding values: How lights and darks create depth and form, and a simple black-and-white photo trick to check your artwork.

• Choosing reference photographs: What makes a good wildlife reference and why the wrong photograph can make your artwork much harder than it needs to be.

• Choosing art supplies: Why you don't need every pencil in the art shop to create beautiful artwork.

Kerri also shares some of her own experiences creating wildlife art, including lessons learned from taking reference photographs and working on commissioned pet portraits.

Want to put these tips into practice?

Download Kerri's FREE Wildlife Artist's Starter Pack, featuring four practical guides:

• Realism Cheat Sheet

• Value Scale Worksheet & Demonstration

• Reference Photo Guide

• Essential Equipment List

Download your FREE Starter Pack here

In This Episode, You'll Discover:Free Resource – Wildlife Artist's Starter Pack. https://the-creative-barn.newzenler.com/fp/wildlife-artist-starter-pack

About the Tuesday Art Chat Podcast

Join Australian wildlife artist and educator Kerri Dixon for relaxed conversations about wildlife art, drawing techniques, creativity, art supplies and building confidence as an artist.

Whether you're picking up your pencils for the first time or rediscovering your love of art, you're always welcome.

Learn more about The Creative Barn: https://www.thecreativebarnmembership.com

Explore Kerri's artwork: https://www.kerridixonart.com

Happy creating!

Have you ever looked at an animal painting and felt an instant emotional connection?

That's exactly what happened when I discovered the beautiful paintings of Victorian artist Briton Rivière (1840–1920).

Known for his extraordinary ability to capture the loyalty, personality and emotion of animals, particularly dogs, Rivière created paintings that went far beyond technical realism. His artwork told stories of companionship, devotion and the special bond between animals and people.

In this episode of the Tuesday Art Chat Podcast, we're stepping back in time to discover the man behind these remarkable paintings.

From spending hours observing lions at the zoo to bringing dogs, horses and even pigs into his studio, Rivière went to extraordinary lengths to understand his subjects.

We'll also explore some of his fascinating preparatory sketches, including beautiful studies of puppies and lambs created with coloured chalks on buff paper — a technique that will feel very familiar to today's pastel artists!

• The touching story behind Rivière's painting Sympathy (1877).

• How he captured emotion through animal posture, expression and composition.

• His extraordinary patience studying animals from life.

• What his original sketches reveal about anatomy, gesture and realism.

• The similarities between his coloured chalk studies and modern pastel techniques.

• Why understanding your subject is more important than painting every individual hair.

• How we can bring more storytelling and emotional connection into our own wildlife artwork.

• His interesting advice about working on several paintings at once.

One of the things I love most about Rivière's paintings is that he didn't need to exaggerate an animal's expression to create emotion.

A dog sitting quietly beside its owner could tell an entire story.

And it's a lovely reminder that realism isn't just about making an animal look real — it's about making it feel alive.

So next time you're choosing a reference photograph or planning a painting, ask yourself:

What do I want someone to feel when they look at this artwork?

Discover The Creative Barn

Would you love to improve your animal drawing and pastel painting skills?

Inside The Creative Barn, my online art membership, you'll find step-by-step wildlife art tutorials, practical lessons and a supportive creative community to help you develop your skills and enjoy your artistic journey.

https://www.thecreativebarnmembership.com

Learn More About Briton Rivière

If you'd like to explore some of the historical sources mentioned in this episode:

• 1896 Illustrated Interview with Briton Rivière – The Strand Magazine

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Have you got paintings tucked away in a drawer because you don't think they're good enough to show anyone?

Well, before you throw them away, think again!

In this episode of the Tuesday Art Chat Podcast, wildlife artist and educator Kerri Dixon explores creative ways to turn your artwork, including unfinished paintings, practice pieces and even those not-so-successful experiments, into beautiful, meaningful Christmas gifts.

Kerri shares how a couple of simple watercolour backgrounds, originally intended to be painted over, became gorgeous designs for cushions, tote bags, clothing and even a bucket hat!

You'll discover that your artwork doesn't have to be a masterpiece to become something special.

• Why your art is good enough: Learning to see beyond the mistakes and recognise the value in what you've created.

• Turning paintings into gifts: Creative ideas for greeting cards, cushions, tote bags, calendars, notebooks, fabric and more.

• Finding beauty in unfinished artwork: How cropping, repeating patterns and experimenting with colours can give old paintings a completely new purpose.

• Getting creative with Canva: Simple ways to prepare your artwork and preview designs on products.

• Print-on-demand services: Exploring options for printing personalised gifts without ordering large quantities.

• Handmade Christmas keepsakes: Small original paintings, gift tags, bookmarks and decorations.

• Creating Christmas traditions: Making seasonal artwork for your home and sharing creative projects with your grandchildren.

• Preparing artwork for printing: Tips for photographing, editing and getting your designs ready.

Find one painting you've put aside because you weren't happy with it.

Instead of asking whether it's good enough to frame, ask yourself:

"What else could this become?"

Perhaps a little section would make a lovely greeting card, or the colours could become a beautiful fabric pattern.

Have a play, experiment and see what possibilities you discover!

Design and printing platforms:

• Canva – https://www.canva.com

• Printful – https://www.printful.com

• Printify – https://printify.com

• VistaPrint – https://www.vistaprint.com.au

• Spoonflower – https://www.spoonflower.com

• Redbubble – https://www.redbubble.com

Explore wildlife art tutorials and The Creative Barn membership:

https://www.thecreativebarnmembership.com

Ever dreamed of going on an art retreat?

Join Kerri for a wildlife art retreat at Australia Zoo, where art, wildlife and wonderful creative friendships come together.

https://www.kerridixonart.com/art-retreats/

Your artwork doesn't have to be perfect to make someone smile.

Sometimes a painting's greatest purpose isn't hanging on a gallery wall. It might be becoming a treasured Christmas card, a handmade keepsake or a thoughtful gift for someone you love.

So don't be too quick to dismiss those paintings hiding in your drawers. They might just be this year's Christmas presents!

Happy creating!

Kerri

Beyond the Reference Photo: Creating Wildlife Art That Tells a Story

Have you ever spotted a beautiful wildlife photograph and immediately thought, “I'd love to paint that!”?

But what if that photograph was just the beginning?

In this episode of the Tuesday Art Chat Podcast, I'm exploring how researching our wildlife subjects can inspire more meaningful and creative artwork. Rather than simply copying what we see in a reference photograph, we'll look at how understanding an animal's behaviour, habitat and unique characteristics can help us make our own artistic decisions.

I'll share examples from my Colours of K'gari dingo series and explore how the Greater Gliders living on our property could inspire three completely different compositions.

Because sometimes the most interesting part of a wildlife painting isn't what we can see in the photograph — it's the story behind it!

• Going beyond the reference photo: Why a photograph can be the starting point rather than the final composition.

• Researching your wildlife subjects: How learning about an animal's habitat, behaviour and characteristics can spark new ideas.

• My Colours of K'gari series: How observing dingoes has inspired paintings that explore expression, movement and behaviour.

• One animal, three compositions: Using Greater Gliders to explore portraits, habitat and atmospheric scenes.

• Making creative decisions: How composition, lighting, colour, values and edges help tell a story.

• Creating an art series: Why exploring one subject through several paintings can help develop your artistic voice.

• Reference photos and copyright: The importance of using photographs you have permission to work from.

Before starting your next wildlife painting, try this simple exercise:

1. Choose an animal that interests you.

2. Spend 15–20 minutes researching its habitat, behaviour or unique characteristics.

3. Create three quick thumbnail sketches exploring different compositions.

4. Consider which idea tells the most interesting story.

You might discover that your favourite composition isn't the one you originally had in mind!

And remember, not every painting needs a deep meaning or conservation message. Sometimes we paint an animal simply because we think it's beautiful, and that's perfectly fine too.

The important thing is to explore your creativity and enjoy the process.

Learn wildlife drawing and soft pastel techniques with me:
https://kerridixonart.com

Explore The Creative Barn:
My online art membership, where you'll find step-by-step drawing and soft pastel tutorials, structured learning pathways and plenty of inspiration to keep creating.

https://www.youtube.com/kerridixonart

Watch Tuesday Art Chat on YouTube:
Find the video version of this episode and explore more art discussions and demonstrations on my YouTube channel.

A reference photograph shows us what an animal looks like. Research helps us discover the story we want to tell.

I hope this episode encourages you to look a little further, ask a few more questions and discover new possibilities for your next artwork.

Happy creating!

Kerri

#WildlifeArt #TuesdayArtChat #WildlifeDrawing #SoftPastels #ArtComposition #ReferencePhotos #CreativeProcess #KerriDixonArt

Can a drawing really make a difference?

In this episode of the Tuesday Art Chat Podcast, I’m exploring how wildlife artists can use the art we already love creating to raise awareness, tell the stories of threatened species and even support wildlife conservation.

This topic was inspired by our latest Draw for Wildlife event, where 135 people came together online to draw a juvenile green sea turtle named Elliott — and together we raised $1,350 for Turtles in Trouble Rescue.

One turtle. One drawing. Two hours creating together. And a very real contribution to a small wildlife rescue organisation.

But fundraising is only one way our art can make a difference.

In this episode, I also share the stories behind some of the animals I’ve drawn, including the Greater Gliders that live here on our farm, Gouldian Finches and my K’gari dingo paintings.

We chat about how simply choosing a threatened species as your subject can introduce people to an animal they may never have heard of before — and why telling the story behind your artwork can sometimes be just as important as the artwork itself.

• How Draw for Wildlife raised $1,350 for turtle rescue

• Why wildlife artists are in a unique position to raise awareness

• Finding threatened species living in your own area

• My personal connection with Greater Gliders

• Gouldian Finches and how captive populations can give us a very different impression of what’s happening in the wild

• Why conservation art doesn’t always need to show suffering

• Using beauty to help people connect with wildlife

• Adding simple information cards and QR codes to wildlife artwork at exhibitions

• Supporting conservation organisations without creating more work for them

• Why I donated 10% from sales of my K’gari dingo paintings and prints to d

You’ve put down the final pastel pencil, stepped back from your painting and finally decided…

It’s finished!

But what happens next?

In this episode of the Tuesday Art Chat Podcast, I’m talking about everything that happens after the last stroke — from deciding whether your artwork really is finished to protecting, storing, photographing and framing your soft pastel paintings.

These are questions I’m asked all the time, and they’re things we don’t tend to think about while we’re busy learning how to create the artwork itself.

We’ll chat about why I like to walk away from a painting before officially calling it finished, why I personally don’t use fixative on my pastel paintings, and the simple way I protect finished artwork using glassine and flat storage.

I’ll also explain why photographing every finished artwork has become one of the most valuable habits in my own art practice. You may not plan on selling prints or entering competitions today, but that photograph could become incredibly useful years from now.

Then we’ll get into framing — including the simple framing system I use, why I standardise my artwork sizes, how I reuse frames for exhibitions, the importance of a pastel gap, and why you should never tape your artwork down on all four sides.

• How to decide when your artwork is really finished
• Signing and recording your finished paintings
• Whether you should use fixative on soft pastel
• Using glassine to protect pastel artwork
• How to safely store and transport finished paintings
• Why you should photograph every artwork you create
• Simple tips for photographing artwork accurately
• How I edit and save my artwork photographs
• Framing soft pastel behind glass
• Mats, glass and creating a pastel gap
• Why I standardise my artwork sizes and reuse frames
• How to mount pastel artwork correctly
• Making budget frames look more professional
• The simple finishing routine I use with every painting

If you’d like something you can keep beside you in the studio, I’ve put all of this information together in my free After the Last Stroke ebook.

It will walk you through how to protect, store, photograph and frame your finished soft pastel artwork, so you know exactly what to do once those pencils finally go down.

Download your FREE After the Last Stroke guide

And remember — before you rush off to start your next painting, take a moment to enjoy the one you've just finished.

Every finished artwork is another little marker of how far you’ve come.

Happy creating,
Kerri x

Kerri shares a practical book chat on Austin Kleon’s Keep Going, focusing on how artists can stay creative when time is tight, motivation dips, and life gets noisy.

This episode is especially useful if you want simple, repeatable ways to keep making art without waiting for the perfect mood or perfect schedule.

In this episode, Kerri explores how the book’s ideas apply to real artistic life, from routines and lists to play, gifts, and seasonal creativity. She also reflects on what it means to keep creating for the love of it, not just for output or income.

Kerri Dixon takes listeners back to the 1800s for another Meet the Masters episode, focusing on Mary Cassatt and the practical lessons her work offers modern artists.

The episode is especially useful for pastel artists, but the takeaways apply just as much to composition, mark making, and deciding where detail belongs.

Kerri explores how Cassatt balanced smooth blending with loose, visible strokes, used colored paper as part of the artwork, and made ordinary domestic scenes feel worthy of serious art.

She also connects Cassatt’s approach to wildlife and nature art, showing how historical practice can solve very current creative problems.

You can watch the video chat on Youtube

How to Take Reference Photos With a Painting in Mind

In this episode, Kerri Dixon explains how wildlife artists can move beyond “good photos” and start collecting reference images that actually support a stronger painting. She shares a practical way to see, capture, and design compositions, using her own zoo photography and studio editing process as examples.The focus is on reference photos, composition, and lighting, with a clear message: the camera records the scene, but the artist makes the painting.

Key topics

• In this episode, Kerri Dixon introduces the idea of taking reference photos with the final artwork in mind, not just snapping a nice wildlife picture.
• She explains why it helps to look beyond the animal and scan the full frame for distractions, background shapes, light, poles, fences, and other elements that affect composition.
• Kerri shares a meerkat example from Australia Zoo, where moving slightly to the side removed a boab tree that looked like it was growing out of the animal’s head.
• She emphasizes collecting options rather than hunting for one perfect image, including wide shots, close-ups, verticals, horizontals, and different angles.
• Kerri talks about photographing details like fur, ears, feet, tail, shadows, grasses, and environmental textures so later studio work has more information to draw from.
• She explores how lighting can make or break a reference photo, especially directional light, edge highlights, eye highlights, and strong shadows that reveal form.
• She also notes that soft overcast light can be valuable too, depending on whether the goal is mood, form, color, or clarity.
• In the studio, Kerri describes using a rule of thirds template in Canva, Photoshop, or Procreate to test different crops and placements before drawing.
• She reframes the rule of thirds as a guide rather than a rule, encouraging artists to experiment with centered compositions, negative space, and subject placement.
• Kerri closes with a simple three-step mindset: see it, capture it, design it, then use multiple photos to build a stronger artwork and a stronger artistic voice.