Whew! This turned out to be more challenging than I thought it would be. Tried to "rough" 'em up, make it more painterly, but I couldn't bear to muck up the eyes and so it kept moving back toward a more finished surface..... I think it'll be ok, though. All that's left is to varnish it and haul it 1200 miles to deliver as a belated wedding present. Even if the recipients view it as a big ol' white elephant, I'm ok with that; they can put it in the dogs' room in the basement.
An aside about giving artwork as gifts: Caveat Emptor. Especially with anything bigger than a loaf of bread. People like what they like, emphasis on "they/them" -- and not YOU. In this particular case, I went ahead anyway for several reasons: 1) recipients are related to me, my niece and her new husband 2) recipients are huge dog-lovers and 3) some 35+ years ago I made some "art" for her parents' wedding present, and it was definitely a whiter-than-white elephant, right from the get-go. To their credit, my brother and sister-in-law never let on to my much younger self (not an artist then) that it was anything but welcome and appreciated.
Point is, I would die of mortification if I ever saw that "art" again; artwork is relative and has a shelf life, some longer than others. Just because it claims to be art doesn't mean it can't be disposed of in due time. I know my tastes have changed over the years -- haven't yours?
