How to Paint Fur on Animals
- 1). Paint broad areas of color to denote the deep fur shades. This is the color under the surface hairs and is often dark brown or gray. Give the animal shape a dark background to show the lighter individual hairs.
- 2). Place dark and light areas where you see them. Imagine the texture of the fur and move the color around on your surface to try to capture this quality.
- 3). Apply paint from the bottom to the top of each hair stroke. Move your brush in the direction that the hair grows. Use small brushes for short fur and bigger ones for thicker fur that needs more paint to capture the essence of the fur.
- 4). Add a few details to give the illusion of the total fur body. You do not need to cover the whole animal with these fine brush strokes.
- 5). Soften the painted edges of the fur where the hair is soft. Use a brush full of solvent to accomplish this task. Solvents vary with the medium. Water is used with acrylic and watercolors while the solvent for oil paints is turpentine. If the fur texture is bristly, leave sharp edges.
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