Chelsea, an Alien (I mean an Italian Greyhound)

A fragile and delicate canine! A birthday gift for a lucky mom purchased by her daughter.

11" x 14"

oil on canvas

Hope, an Oil Painting of a Friend

Sometimes being an artist means you have the ability create a gift that will mean the world to someone. Hope was a two year old rescue dog whose owner adopted her from a kennel and then spent a ton of money on surgery to repair her damaged hip. Apparently the dog became her best friend and protector for eight years. Hope passed away this year and the owner's mother contacted me about creating an oil painting of her. The picture she supplied was not lovely. It showed Hope in the treatment room at the veterinarian's and was taken from an awkward angle. I focused on her gentle face and beautiful fur, cropping out the background and changing her position a little. I have a Golden so I had a perfect model for the ears.

This portrait of Hope came together easily and I think her mom will love it when she receives it for Christmas this year. I love these kind of projects. 

Hope 11" x 14" oil on canvas 

Three Dog Night

OK, it took me more than three nights to paint these cute little fellas. They all live together in complete harmony with their human family. Again, maybe that is a bit inaccurate; they do not always get along. Their "mom" took a series of pictures of them sitting on her bed. I used what I could. The photos were a bit blurry but she didn't use the flash and that worked out well. There is nice back lighting in places, that created an almost golden glow and gave me some ideas for the painting.

Jack, on the left, is the leader. He is a true Jack Russell Terrier. The other two are mixed, but still adorable. The baby, Endo, is in the middle and the old man of the group, Beeko, is on the right.

This is not the most dogs I have ever put in a portrait. I did five Shelties a few years ago.

12" x 16" Oil on Linen

Adorable

I always tell the client to send me more than one picture of their pet when they commission a painting. Often one photo will present a better view or angle than another. I like to have choices. I think that after all these years of creating paintings I may have a better idea of what will make a painting work. Sure, I can reproduce a photograph exactly and make the painting look like the picture, but where's the fun in that? I want to leave my own imprint on it.

Fran gave me three pictures and while the little dog's head is half-buried in the blanket here and is showing clearly in the other two, I still felt drawn to this one. There is emotion here. The little dog seems to be tucked in for the night with his blanket and his favorite toy.

So I changed the angle of the bed a little and I moved the eyes of his "baby" so it appears to be looking at him and the painting immediately became more compelling. Now he is looking at us and his doggy doll is looking at him. It's a fun painting now, not just a painting of a dog lying down on a bed.

11" x 14" Oil on Canvas

Archie-- an Older Lab

This is a portrait of Archie that I did over the weekend. The portrait will be a Christmas gift. This dog really has personality plus. Every photo I was given had the dog smiling with his tongue hanging open. So, I guess that's his typical look. We strive to be authentic here at the Magical Instamatic Pet Portrait Palace...so here it is:

Archie

9" x 12"

oil on canvas

Lasting Memories

This is Mac, who lived to the ripe old age (for a dog), of 14 years. His owner, Ron, commissioned me to paint a picture of him after he passed away recently. Ron loved Mac very much and although he owned many other dogs, Mac was special. He thinks that might be because Mac was acquired after their children left the nest. I think we do spend more time with our pets when we're not busy raising children.  It's only natural that our animals might become like children too, especially if they are bright and energetic, as Border Collies tend to be. I own a Border-Collie mix and he is a sweet, yet determined boy who is fiercely loyal but too smart for his own good.

Ron did not have many good photos of Mac, so I used a combination of pictures to get the details right. He had one request that could only be accomplished by an artist-- remove the cataracts that clouded Mac's eyes in the last few years of his life. We know he's seeing clearly in Heaven so why not have those lovely bright eyes looking out at the world?

Mac 

11" x 14"

oil on canvas

Yoshi-- a Very Cute Dachshund

This little Dachshund was commissioned by J. Biddle of New Mexico as a Christmas gift for his sister. He gave me several good reference pictures of the dog and told me which one he liked best. It was a picture of the dog on a blue couch with a blanket. I changed the color of the couch and turned it into a drapery type material and came up with this little painting of "Yoshi". His eyes are irresistible. Makes me want my own Dachsund.

Yoshi

11" x 14" oil on canvas

Munson Has Great Presence

This American Pit Bull, named Munson, is owned by the Jordan family of Athens, GA. This painting is a gift for Munson's owner, and was ordered by two of her daughters. The photo reference they provided was great, which is always the most important thing. The dogs appears majestic and at ease as he lies on the soft green grass. His pinkish skin is a natural foil to the yellow greenlawn and I played that up quite a bit. The intelligence shining from his eyes is unmistakeable.

Wonderful dog... sometimes you just know when a painting will become a popular print order. I am so tired of Pit Bulls being demonized by the press. Sure there are bad pit bulls, but there are bad dogs of EVERY breed. Owners need to take responsibility for their dogs and train them. You don't keep a loaded gun in the house without knowing how to use it and you don't become the owner of an aggressive type of dog without learning how to train it and make it listen to you.

11" x 14" oil on canvas

Munson