Doghouse Boxing's Official Manny Pacquiao Art by Coyote Duran

Doghouse Boxing's Official Manny Pacquiao Art by Coyote Duran

By Doghouse Boxing (March 9, 2009) Doghouse Boxing

Associate Editor of Doghouse Boxing and portrait artist Coyote Duran has officially released his first acrylic painting in 14 years; a rendering of pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao. Artistically, Duran is known for black and white photo-realistic renderings of fighters and celebrities alike; done in graphite. However, he admitted it was time to evolve from his perennial medium.

"I think, as an artist, despite being comfortable working strictly in pencil, I needed to grow in order to

even try and match the standards that artists like LeRoy Neiman, Richard Slone, Rowland Salley and Alex Ross have set." said Coyote. "These guys all work in color and I just figured I might as well too."

"I chose acrylic simply because of its quick-drying quality. Sometimes it dries too quickly and there's a lot of brush-

cleaning so I don't find my paint clumping. Plus, it's just a smooth feeling when it goes on the board I'm using." continued Duran. "I tried oils many moons ago while experimenting but they just don't dry to my liking."

Coyote's choice to render 'Pac-Man' was no accident.

"Right now, Pacquiao's the king of the hill and the toast of the town; boxing-wise. His fanbase is legion and it's that kind of modern-day icon fans might want to see memorialized. I also wanted to make certain I could incorporate the flag of the Philippines as well. Manny's so important to his people and brings them the sense of, 'If I can rise from the most meager of beginnings and prosper, then so can you.' But I kept it simple. I did the layout on a 12" X 16" masonite board; primed in Gesso. Simple as all get out."

Admittedly, Coyote didn't give much thought to how near Pacquiao's world title challenge of 140-pound champion Ricky Hatton was while he was painting the piece.

"After the painting had been finished and shown about, Chee, my webmaster at Doghouse, mentioned that it could serve as an official event piece. I thought, s**t, I can't just have one fighter and not the other. It's now, literally, back to the drawing board." laughs Coyote. "But I love the idea of a challenge and Hatton deserves a rendering just as much as Pac does."

When the Ricky Hatton portrait, or any of Coyote's other works are released, you can be sure that Doghouse Boxing will be first in the know for official Coyote Duran art news.

To contact Coyote regarding a commission or to view his work, please visit myspace.com/coyote_duran, facebook.com or e-mail him at artofthepaw@yahoo.com.