What is Scratchboard?

Scratchboard Pet Portraits

Each scratchboard is meticulously hand rendered using an Ampersand board and permanent inks. The board is then protected with several layers of a UV protecting sealant. If you are interested in having a Scratchboard Portrait done, please make sure you provide several high resolution (at least 2 MB each), in focus photos and a description of your pet's personality. You may also choose to have a wildlife portrait done. Again, I will need good photos of the subject. The photos you provide are the most important part of the process. The quality of the finished scratchboard depends on the quality of all the photos that you provide. If the quality of the photos are not good enough, I can not complete your portrait. You can refer to my photo tips page to help you get the best references for the portrait.

Scratchboard is a process in which the artist uses a sharp instrument to incise into the board. The board that I use is a Masonite board with a coating of white clay and then an outer layer of India ink. So, when I incise into the black board, it reveals the white clay layer. Because I use a thin blade, I am able to get finer details than with any other method. If I choose to color the scratchboard, I will first scratch it to black and white, then paint in layers of color, scratching between each layer. The process takes much longer than other mediums, but the results are a very precise rendering, getting every hair of the animal.

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