John Jakovlic

There's a particular kind of attention a dachshund gives you — head tilted back, eyes wide, ears caught mid-swing — like the whole world is happening two feet in front of her nose and she needs to know exactly what it is. That's the moment I wanted to catch with Ruby. Ruby, Watercolor on Strathmore #500 Series I painted her from above, looking down into that upturned face, which meant working with some serious foreshortening — her body stretching back and up into the frame, front paw planted,...

This one started as a simple practice session. I found a great frog photo on Pinterest and used it as a reference to try out a new set of watercolor pencils I'd been wanting to test. Watercolor Pencils on Strathmore 500 Series I went in with ink first, letting the pen do the structural work — the eye, the curve of the back, the angle of the hind leg tucked up underneath. From there it was all about layering color loosely and letting the pigments mix on the page rather than on the palette. You...

Most flowers don't ask you to invent anything — you look at a rose, you know what red to mix, you're done, no drama. This one had other plans. The shape is true to life, something cosmos-like, all those narrow pointed petals fanning out from a dense little center. The color, though? Entirely made up. There is no flower on earth this particular shade of turquoise. I just decided it should be, and the paint didn't argue. Watercolor on Mineral Paper The bigger plot twist here was the paper. I...