July 8, Goethe

 Oh my word, what an elegant creature this is... 

I've painted several dogs for Nick and his partner, and this is the second Giant Schnauzer- last year I painted Ingo who in his sprawling position as a delight to extend widely to the edges of the canvas. Goethe is a bit more reserved, and in a square format feels a little more contained. Here's what Nick said about Goethe~

"For a long time we have wanted to ask you to make a painting of the first of our Giant Schnauzers - Goethe - he sadly left us in the early 2000's. He was a formidable chap, very serious but loving and loyal. If you would like to add him to your 30-in-30 list we would love to buy the painting so we can include him with the paintings of Werner and Ingo that we love so much.

The futon was his favorite place -  I used the word serious to describe him, perhaps a more accurate word is sincere."

 I love using the word "sincere" to describe a dog such as Goethe...

10x10 acrylic on panel

sold

 And this stunner is Huck!  here's what Mary wrote about him~ great story~

Huck was a wild dog who had been to 4 homes before mine and had been kept in kennels for long periods of time because no one could handle him. I was asked by my daughter who worked with the rescue if I could give him some attention and training since I was retired and had time on my hands. I said I would foster… he never left. 

Once he arrived he got to work destroying everything I owned and my mantra became, “Huck has come into my life to show me what I don’t need anymore.” As a giant schnauzer/border collie mix, he was big enough to peruse the top of a book shelf and choose the most irreplaceable thing  it held. He would grab tubes of paint from my easel and run around the house squeezing paint out onto rare antique rugs and new furniture alike, resulting in a rainbow of colors in his white beard that I would carefully clean to avoid poisoning him. He went through 2 rounds of dog boot camp and even the trainers were perplexed about how to address his behavior.

I should mention that he was also incredibly sweet and funny and I was willing to work with him as long as it took for him to become a (semi) well behaved boy. Just as I was at my wits end in that pursuit, a trip to a friend’s cabin helped me stumble upon the answer, SWIMMING! He could swim for hours a day and found pure joy in the water. He swam back and forth in long laps across the lake. He swam next to boats and canoes, It had a calming effect  on him and he became a different dog. With this discovery,his

behavior,even between lake visits, miraculously changed. 

Huck became my constant companion and protector. He accompanied me on numerous cross country road trips for the 8 years he lived. He entertained my 102 year old father immensely and was a treasured visitor to all at his assisted living. 

Sadly,Huck was struck suddenly with an aggressive form of lymphatic cancer in the autumn or 2024 just after my father’s passing. By the time we discovered it he was suffering and struggling to breathe and we had to say goodbye far too soon. 

He remains in our hearts and is the subject of many true stories that all sound like tall tales  and despite his initial years of challenging antics, I fell in love and he became a cherished family member and a really good boy.

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold!

 

July 6, Heidi for Judy!

 It is still lovely and green in Minnesota- I hope you are finding cool spots wherever you are! It does get humid here, and you move slower and seek water, both to be in and to drink. I leave water out for the butterflies and birds and critters... and neighborhood dogs as they walk around. My pups always appreciate a bowl of clear fresh water as we walk the hood!

And this beauty is Heidi, who is Judy's Soul Dog, and who has a Magic Eye, as you can see! Perhaps Judy will tell us more about this amazing creature and I'll include it in the book!

I am always accepting commissions, so if you were hoping to be a part of this project, you can still send me your photos! If you know you want to buy it, I'll fit you in!

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold!

July 5, Waylon

 Here's one that I just couldn't resist painting... can you tell why? Those big freaking eyes, that whole expression, the little bit of a lip...

Goodness! Who wouldn't want to paint Waylon!

And it is said about him that "He’s a cute little sausage who keeps up with his doggy siblings."

6x6 acrylic on wood

$160

click here for purchase info!

July 4, Lulu

 And this is Lulu~

She just seemed kind of an All-American Dog to me...

I hope you are having a safe, kind, communal, friendly, amusing 4th of July! 

8x8 acrylic on wood

$275

click here to purchase!

July 3, Lily for Donna!

Whew!  Lots going on around here! And this is LILY!!! Who doesn't love a sweet faced fluffball? And Donna wrote our her little story~

"Lily is an adopted pup we were happy to find. We don’t know her back story.   She  nicknamed the trash panda. She needs petting….her happy tail never ever rests!"

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold!

July 2, Cleopatra

 This is Cleopatra!  Doesn't she just really do the name justice?

And here's what Don wrote about her~

This is Cleopatra, our beautiful girl. When we were stuck at home during COVID lockdown we thought it was the perfect time to adopt a puppy. She's six years old now, very sweet and affectionate, but only has one thing on her mind... B-A-L-L!

6x6 acrylic on wood

sold

July 1, Lucy's Dog! and the OFFICIAL LIST!

 Okay, this is the first dog of the 30 Dogs in 30 Days and I don't know his or her name!  Lucy had shown me the photo and sent it to me, asking me to paint it, and I believe it is a relative's pup, and so possibly her nephew/niece pup... and since Lucy owns Diamond's Coffee Shoppe where I've been curating shows and hanging my 30 in 30 Projects for over 15 years (holy cow!) AND since Lucy is CLOSING DIAMONDS this weekend, I needed to make the first dog hers. I wouldn't have gotten as far as I have without having her as a consistent and gentle space in which I could experiement and play with my work.

Here's to Lucy!  And GIT OVER TO DIAMONDS! I'm going today!

Oy, AND the OFFICIAL LIST of the 30 in 30 for this July! With the understanding that I am human and it will be switching around as the month goes...

8x10 acrylic on canvas

spoken for~

And the OFFICIAL LIST!

July  2026

1- Big Ears for Lucy  8x10

2- Cleopatra for Don 6x6 

3- Lily for Donna 8x8 

4- Whiskey for Dawn 8x8

5- Waylon for Kelly E 6x6

6- Heidi for Judy S 8x8 

7- Huck for Mary 8x8 

8- Goethe for Nick 10x10 

9-  Orion for Julie M

10- Frank for Paul D 6x6 

11- Clover for Tanya B 8x8 

12- Harley for Judy Fi 8x8 

13- Bramble for Charlotte 8x8

14- Valdez for Laura A

15- Pepper for Shestin L 8x8 

16- Shepard for Gennae 12x6

17- Old Cutie Kirby for Lisa A

18- Black and White pup for Kellie H

19- Percy for Andrew K

20- Rocky for jereed

21- Lucy at Camp for Angela

22- Jojo for Amalia 8x8 

23- Baby for Susan H 6x6

24- Cosmo and Comet for Betsy N 9x12

25- Tiley for Paula R 6x6

26- Harlow for Katie F 6x6

27- Catherine Palmer/Kim whiteford- Louise Ann, aka wheezy 6x6

28-  Cheena Marie for Kendyl B 6x6

29- Don and Rythmn for Joe L 9x12

30- Mochi for Max 12x12

June 29th, Snoop!

 This is a commission, a 12x12 on board of a fluffy pup, whose fur somewhat overtakes his sweet face, and his owner was concerned that he looked unhappy in the first rendition so I went back in to see if I could make him happier, and I hope I managed!

I am actively compiling my list at the moment and will be posting it tomorrow!!  I DO still have some spaces open for my 30 Dogs, and if you want your painted for SURE, I'm happy to fit you in!

You can follow along on my blog posts at my instagram account, I think... here's that link!

And here's the 30 Dogs info page! Still looking for a venue to hang the dogs for the month of August, if you can think of anything!

12x12 acrylic on wood

sold

June 24, His Daughter's Horses

 Whew!  Here's another commission I've been working on for a while- I love horses! They are anatomically quite different from cats and dogs, though... a little closer to the deer I love and haven't painted in a while either!  These are for my sweet friend Andy, for his daughter who loves her horses dearly.

I wasn't sure about the background, painting it in blues first, but I'm really happy with the somewhat abstracted trees back there!

a bit of a wonky photo, taken on a fully laden picnic table...

11x14 acrylic on wood

sold

June 20, The Daily Path

 At camp we are living in the woods. It's a maple forest mostly, with tall, gangly trunks rising up above more smaller tall gangly trunks and a wonderful airy green atmosphere. Every day is a gift, walking through that space.

10x8 acrylic on archival carton

$160

click here for purchase info

Up NOrth Painting~

 Yep! I'm up north a bit, painting and working with kids! Got some pups around here to paint so that helps too, and there's always the beauty of the lake to pull me in. This painting is from a cloudy sunset- and all that color is true! The sunsets are amazing up here!

It is pretty chilly up here too, which I absolutely love, except for those few minutes between taking clothes off and getting into the bed, and that other time of getting OUT of the bed and into clothes in the morning!

And just as a little reminder, SEND ME YOUR DOGS!  I'm still looking for a number of dog photos for my July 30 Dogs in 30 Days project!

Wahoo!

Evening Light

9x12 acrylic on wood

$215 

click here to purchase!

June 10, Boris

 Yes, another commission! I seem to love fluffy fur... it's really fun to paint. With the black ground I paint on, it's painting in the highlights for the most part! Not a lot more to worry about!

Love it!

Oh and if you want to learn how to paint from me, I'll be offering some classes in July, just one day 2.5-3 hour classes on how to paint your pet! 

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold!

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June 7, Another Pup!

 I''m collecting photos for this July's 30 Dogs in 30 Days project and I'd love to paint YOUR dog too!

This was a commission for a friend to give to a friend, and I'm told was very well received- I can't quite explain how much it means to me to feel that a painting of mine can help breach a gap and heal a little love~

It's pretty cool...

12x14 acrylic on wood

sold

Another Commission!

Okay, so sometimes I fall in love with the pet I'm supposed to be painting, just from the photos, and this is definitely one of those....

Can you tel why?

Those large, liquid eyes, piercing you with love (and probably a desire for bacon) and that fluff, and the sweet little nose...

Just all of Hubert is extremely loveable!

BUT you can have your OWN painting of your OWN beloved pup and I can paint it this July for my 30 Dogs in 30 Days Project!  More info HERE!

6x6 acrylic on wood

spoken for!

 

Sydney! A Commission!

 Hey y'all! I'm just about done with school for the year, and getting ready to start lining up DOGS for 30 Dogs in 30 Days! If you have some dog pics you want to send me, now is the time!

This was a commission I finished up a little bit ago- I am so lucky that I truly enjoy painting commissions! And this one was SO fun- something about that gaze, those ears, that lip....

I'm so lucky~

10x10 acrylic on panel

sold

May 13, Bella and Jack, a Commission

 Yes, I love to paint, and I love to paint animals, so I am really lucky that the combination of both of those results in plenty of commissions!

It means I get to paint what I love, AND I know the artwork already has a home!

This is Bella and Jack, an incredibly sweet pair of doxies~

9x12 acrylic on wood

sold

May 2, Art4Shelter!

Friday night was the annal Art 4 Shelter fundraiser for Simpson Housing Services, and I was live painting there along with my fellow artists Barrett and Jennie who were also the artists who were with me in 2018!  It was super fun, I was able to get two paintings done and both were bid on and claimed!

The first painting was from a photo I found on insta-  I need to write to the person and let them know I painted it! The dog is just so sweet and silly and I loved all the fluff!

And the second is an otter~

And there were SOOOO many people!  I really hope we did well!  Steve is retiring, the guy who has led so much of the work to get the new shelter built over by MIA, and it is beautiful. It's just so hard in the world right now to know what to do next, what can help, and things like this make me feel like I am actually doing something to help, even in just a small way.

April 29, Mincing Steps

 Yes, another spanish goat.... my brother just got the greatest photos of these!  He and my sister in law are great hikers and on this day they went on a 14 mile hike through the Spanish hills where they were staying and saw all these goats... I loved this one's step and that lifted foreleg!

24x36 acrylic on canvas

$1750

click here for purchase info!

April 27, Spanish Wall Walker

 Man, i meant to be posting WAY more than I have been!  Sheesh- 

This is a goat from a photo my brother sent to me while wandering in Spain back in March- I was fascinated by the shapes of her (or him... don't know why but she strikes me as more feminine... how do you sex a goat anyway?) and the spaces around her, and by those crazy clingy sticky hoovies!  Look at how she's standing sideways!  Oh and the eyes too!  SO cool!

I'll either have her with me at the Sculpture Park Art Fair at the Walker May 9 and 10 or I'll be hanging her at Diamond's for May-june!

24x36 acrylic on canvas

$1750

click here for purchase info!