Kevin the Flat-Coated Retriever
Capturing Kevin’s heart-warming personality
I first saw Kevin on Instagram. His beaming smile (and sometimes slightly guilty expressions), never failed to make me chuckle. It was wonderful when Kevin’s owner, Milana, got in touch asking me to draw Kevin’s portrait for her. Milana had seen a portrait of a beautiful flattie called Bama that I’d recently drawn, and knew she had to have one of her beloved Kevin.
Finished portrait of Kevin and a couple of close ups showing the fine details
Kevin the Baseball Mascot
Milana took some time to tell me all about Kevin, so that I could get an insight into his wonderful personality. Kevin is Milana’s first dog, and it’s fair to say she’s besotted with him. (Who wouldn’t be?) His super friendly, goofy personality wins everyone over. Kevin is also known for his lack of body awareness, and a high speed run often results in a face plant!
Milana told me how Kevin is her big cuddly bear, her best friend, and is always snuggled up next to her. He goes everywhere with Milana, and has become quite the local celebrity. Kevin especially loves going to baseball games, and has become somewhat of a team mascot.
Kevin posing with his framed portrait
Capturing Kevin’s Goofball Personality
Milana and I reviewed several lovely photos of Kevin, looking for that perfect reference picture for me to draw his portrait from. Milana said Kevin smiles constantly, even when he’s sleeping, so we knew his portrait had to reflect that. We chose a photo that really captured his glorious beaming grin and happy nature. The photo was taken at the local baseball ground so that was an extra lovely touch.
Choosing a head and shoulders pose meant that the portrait focused in on his wonderfully expressive face, and in particular the smile in his eyes.
The light cream background colour contrasted well against his silky black fur, and brought out the glossy shine in his coat. It also gave the portrait a homely feel, which was fitting for Kevin, whose happy place is snuggled on the sofa with Milana.
Kevin's beautiful sunshine smile
Sending Kevin’s portrait overseas
Milana and Kevin live over in Vancouver, Canada, so Kevin’s portrait had to be carefully packaged to ensure its safe arrival. It arrived in perfect condition and Milana was over the moon. She loved it so much, she couldn’t stop looking at it. Kevin also wholeheartedly approved, and happily posed next to it for a few proud photos!
If you’d like to see more of Kevin, take a look at his Instagram profile - @kevintheflatcoat
“This was the first time I have ever experienced having a portrait done and Naomi made the experience perfect. I loved how she wanted to get to know my dog’s characteristics before starting and really added a lot of life to the portrait. The finished product exceeded my expectations and was absolutely amazing.” – Milana Malesevich
Drawing that lovely texture and fine details on Kevin's tongue