"Mystery Dog"

"Name Pending"
9X12
Oil on Canvas
Commissioned

Click on each picture to enlarge.

Finished March 26th. Published, then unpublished, now published again. This guy has freckles and markings on his face that were really a bear to capture. The thing about portraiture is just this; capturing the character of the subject, no fudging around the details, precision is key. Unless of course you are doing something other than realism. Then you can play Picasso and put the nose on the navel if you want to.
I haven't met this fellow in person. Did the whole thing from photos. Which of course always gives me a heart attack on delivery, not knowing for sure if I managed to get his personality just right. In this case you paint what you see, throw in some imaginary emotional connections and just pray for the best. The recipients are a bride and groom and their dog is the beginning of their family life together. I hope they will enjoy this painting for a very long time.

Here he is framed. There is a little glare on this from the wet paint, and the color looks a bit darker. He is stunning on the wall. Really handsome! Not bad honors for a rescued dog from the animal shelter!

"Bosley"

"Bosley"
8X10
Oil on Linen Panel
Artist's Collection

Bosley is our latest companion and is now around 15 months old. He was 9 months old when I did this painting early last fall. I had a tough time with this painting because I was nursing him back to health after elbow dysplasia surgery and I was interrupted twenty million times. He has had a hair cut since then and is really cuter than this, but I was happy to capture the earnest expression on his face. Bosley is just like the dog you imagine in your mind when you think of the song, "How Much is that Doggie in the Window?" ("the one with the waggily tail!") Seriously, he smiles and plays and wags his tail more than any other dog I have ever known. We are deliriously happy to have him. I lucked out when finding him on the website called petfinders.com, which, by the way, is the greatest thing if you are looking to give a home to a rescued dog or cat. Right now he is crashed beside me and waiting for me to tell him it's time to head upstairs to bed.....where we will dream of chasing the ball and wagging our tails all night long! Goodnight.

"Butte"

"Butte"
11X14
Oil on Linen Panel
Commissioned by the Owner

Butte is a mix between Golden Retriever and a Malamute, we think. He is adored by his owners. (oh, those blue eyes!!) And, I might add, a very nice fellow. The painting was a gift from a husband to his wife on her birthday. A birthday celebration and the unveiling of this portrait was enjoyed by friends, family, and this artist!!

This painting was done from one of the photographs supplied by the owners. Sometimes that works out well, assuming the photo has the right light and details. The jpeg emailed to me with this pose was actually a bit vague, so we had to get some other photos to give me more information. But it all worked out in the end. It is handsomely framed in a gold plein air style frame and looks great hanging in their craftsman style house.

"Chewy"

"Chewy"
11X14
Acrylic on Archival Paper
Commissioned by the Owner

Click on picture to enlarge!

Cat owners rejoice! Here is a fine, fat, feline for you. His owners said I flattered him in this portrait by making him look quite not so chubby as he actually is. But I think it is because of this pose. Chewy is one of those lazy bones cats. He lolls around, is not too fond of people, and only shows up to eat. He will probably live to be 100 since he is very adept at staying out of harms way.

Working note: the flash gave me a bit too much shadow, too, but that turned out to be good contrast to him. It looks even more harsh here than it is in the painting.

"Bo"

"Bo"
11X14
Oil on Linen Panel
Commissioned by the Owner

As long as we are on a Cocker Spaniel roll, here is "Bo" McMillan. Bo was really good at posing, especially as his mistress held out treats for him. This was one of his favorite places to be cute, sitting on a leather chair and hanging his paws over the edge of the arm. He has a very erudite air about him. I really enjoyed doing this painting and hope it made his owner happy.

"Lucy Forlorn"

"Lucy Forlorn"
5X8
Watercolor
NFS

This was a watercolor I did of Lucy from a photograph taken the second day after we found her. Obviously, grooming was yet to be done. She was standing there at the vet's office after spending the night and we had come back to pick her up. The tick remedy was done, but as you can see, she still was looking very sad and curious. She had to be wondering who these people were and what on earth was next. She is very lucky to have lived through the thousands of ticks, dehydration, and who knows how long on the road. My daughter loves her to death. This lost dog story has a happy ending at least!

"Lucy"

"Lucy"
8X10
Acrylic on Canvas Panel
Sold

Lucy is a foundling. She was covered in ticks and falling down from exhaustion when we found her on our street in May almost three years ago. Soooo pitiful. There is a longer story than this, but I'll make it short....We gathered her up and put her in a tub to try to clean her up, fed and watered her, and off she went to the Vet to get checked out and de-ticked. She was about 4 months old at the time. And turned out to be the cutest pure blooded Chocolate Cocker Spaniel. She now lives with my daughter and is the most loyal companion. Her only draw back is that she is wary of strangers....but hey, who can blame her after the neglect she suffered at the hands of some lunatic who dumped her out??!! I think you can see that wariness in this painting. She studies you very carefully as if to say, "Are you friend or foe?" We are all in love with her and glad the angels of lost dogs brought her to us.

"Bailey"

"Bailey"
11X14
Oil on Linen Panel
Artist's Collection

This was our beloved Scottie who left us last spring in 2006. I am very glad to have made this portrait of him the year before he died, so we will always see his adorable smile.