Cheek to Cheek
From $29.99 · Within 24 hours
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Cheek to Cheek
A charcoal portrait of a couple and their pet, stacked cheek to cheek on black. Three faces in one frame, and every one of them looking at you.
- Poster Print
- From $39.99
- Premium Canvas
- From $69.99
- Framed Poster
- From $79.99
- Luxury Framed
- From $99.99
- Heirloom Gallery Canvas
- From $179.99
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About This Style
Cheek to Cheek is the closest a portrait gets to lying on the sofa together. One of you rests a head on the pillow, the other rests a head on yours, and the pet rests on top of both, so the three faces sit in one vertical stack with no gap between them. Everyone looks straight out of the frame.
The drawing is charcoal and graphite on a pure black ground. Skin, hair and fur are built from soft silver light rather than outlines, the shoulders dissolve into the dark, and the only bright points are the eyes, which is why the warmth reads from across a room. It is a quiet, intimate piece, closer to a photograph taken in the dark than to a painting.
Three photos make it. One clear picture of each person, one of the pet, and we build the stack ourselves, so nobody needs to have been photographed together and nobody needs to hold still with a dog on their head. Each face is drawn from its own photo and kept exactly as sent: no costume, no props, nothing added.
It is made for a pair who think of their pet as the third one in the house, and it works as well when you are one of the two as when you are buying it for a couple you know. Anniversaries and first homes are where it lands most often.
Dogs and cats both work. A mid to large dog reads most naturally at the top of the stack, and a cat sits there just as happily, simply drawn a little closer in.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do we need a photo of all three of us together?
No. Send one clear photo of each person and one of the pet, three photos in total. We build the stacked composition ourselves, so nobody has to already be posed at the right height or angle.
Is this the same as Three of a Kind?
Same three subjects, different drawing. Three of a Kind puts the heads side by side on cream paper. Cheek to Cheek stacks them vertically on a black ground, closer and darker, with the light carried by the eyes. Pick by the wall it is going on: cream paper for a bright room, black for a moodier one.
What will we be wearing?
Whatever is in each person's own photo, drawn as sent. This is a monochrome drawing rather than a costume piece, so plain dark tops photograph best against the black ground, but nothing is required.
Does it work with a cat, or a small dog?
Yes. The pet sits at the top of the stack whatever its size. A cat or a small dog is drawn resting on the upper head just as a larger dog would be, simply closer in, so the three faces stay tight together.