July 30, Old Cutie Kirby!

 Yup, I just liked this one so much, I had to paint him. It's just such a sweet face, and sometimes that's completely all I want in a painting is something that is cute to look at. 

I think our hearts like to rest on those kinds of things sometimes, to appreciate the sweetness of this world.

Thanks for following along as I painted all these dogs this month!

I'll be getting them all ready to hang, and they'll be displayed at Loons Coffee, 4648 E Lake Street for the month of August, with a closing celebration on Sunday afternoon, August 30th from 4 to 6!

We'll see who I paint tomorrow!

6x6 acrylic on canvas

$160

click here to purchase~

July 29, Don with Rythmn

 This is a painting that was requested by a friend and fellow artist, and I am happy with where it is going but not quite sure it is complete yet!

I'll do a little more work on Don's face- this is my friend Joe's brother, who passed recently, with his therapy dog Rythmn.

I do love paintings that show people and their pets together. We need each other, so much.

12x9 acrylic on wood

spoken for~

July 28, Lucy!

 Lucy is one of the lovely dogs that roam around at Camp Mishawaka, and she lives with the wonderfully buoyant and optimistic Angela and her amazingly flexible and friendly husband Mark. Lucy is slightly shy and doesn't mind sniffling our pugs or playing with their toys, but she doesn't quite join in their silly pug antics. She has a bit more dignity than that.

I've got just two more paintings this month for my 30 Dogs in 30 Days! Thanks for following along! And I do have some room in my Thursday evening Paint Your Pet class if you'd like to join me!  More info and sign up here!

6x6 acrylic on canvas

spoken for~

July 27, Weezy!

 Love this one as well!  Such a great face! And here's what Katie wrote about her-

"Dogs Name: 

"Louise Ann"

Aka- Shaggy Dog 

Aka-Weezy

Weezy is a sweet girl that loves to grab shoes and socks if accessable. She is wiggly and very happy. Her go to items are sticks and balls and anything chewy.

We got her as a pup from Bond Between rescue as a recovery gift for Kim after brain surgery. 

She is 2.5 years old. Her breed is a mix of Labrador, Cattle Dog, Terrior (Pit Bull) and Shitzu. She may have licked the little dog we have before the DNA test. 

We believe a dab of lab will do you good."

6x6 acrylic on wood

sold!

July 26, Orion!

 I do love how creatively people name their pets, and a lot of times the name has a great story too!  I'll see if I can get Julie to give us a better story for Orion here- I wanted to paint him because I loved that look in his eyes and the positioning of his body on that footstool poof cushion thing... it was also a bit tough because I wanted to include his body in the painting- the head didn't work on its own when I cropped it and then I needed to get the proper sized panel to paint this on. A 9x6 is perfect, half of a 9x12!

Here is a little bit about Orion from Julie and her son~ "the shepherd is Orion, he is a Shiloh Shepherd, a gentle giant who loves his pack. Orion's name comes from the constellation we see driving across the prairie. He was a dramatic puppy and learned how to complain early but has matured into a gentle giant." 

9x6 acrylic on wood

$225

click here for purchase info!

July 25, Winnie!

 Painting white dogs on black is a little tricky, and as the acrylic dries it darkens a little. So I may be going back into Winnie a bit here and there but I wanted to get her posted cuz I'm pretty happy with her overall!

Here's what Beth wrote about this sweet face~

"About our Winona (Winnie):

Was it arrogance or just so much love that thought, “how hard can a deaf dog be?” And  Winnie was cute, and she’d been at the shelter too long. Nearly a year later, she’s potty trained (most days), she’s learned several signs, and she is the most joyful and loving soul. She loves - and trusts- her Daddy, her family, and the pack. Her habits for happiness touch your heart: she sleeps touching you so she feels safe to sleep, she barks into the air and then delights at the attention for a sound she can’t hear, she runs to her spot because she KNOWS the sign for “eat” (the other dogs picked up on that too!), and she twirls, zooms, and hops in safe exploration and play. She knows the sign for her name (Winnie) and gives what is obviously a smile when she sees her people “talking” to her.  We all got lucky the day our son decided he had room in his heart and home for our Winnie!"

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold!

July 24, Cosmo and Comet

 Here's another one I had to paint... it still cracks me up just to see the wide chasm between these expression!  Terror, and joy!

Betsy needs to write more about them but here's what I've gathered...

This is "Cosmo, toy Aussie and Comet, Siberian Husky (who has crossed the rainbow bridge and is no longer with us). Haha, yes their expressions show their personalities so well!  Animals are the best muses."

Oh and I have a space to show the dogs!  We will be at Loons Coffee at the end of Lake Street just before the Marshall Ave Bridge!  I'll be hanging the show next weekend I hope- I'm actually running over there today and hanging some artwork in the meantime-

This means we can have a Closing Party and you can come pick up your paintings and your book and even bring your dog along if they are the type that can handle being with other dogs! I'm imagining August 30th, a Sunday in the afternoon- or even later! I'll let you know!

8x10 acrylic on wood

spoken for!

July 23, Baby!

 So this is Baby,  a rescue beagle beloved by Susan! I didn't get a story from her yet, but this was a fun one to paint, trying to include the feet and little toes and claws on the side there...

hope you're enjoying the weather!

8x8 acrylic on wood

$275

click here for purchase info!

July 22, Jojo!

We are LOVING the cool air in Minnesota the last couple of days! Hope you are enjoying the world where you are too~

Is it obvious that this pup's ears needed to be painted? I mean, really! Just look at these ears! Oh and those eyes too- and also, did you know my favorite dog ever was an 8 year old english cocker spaniel named Jojo? It's the best name...

And this is what Amalia says about her Jojo~

 "This is Jojo, she’s a 11 year old Ruff Start rescue from the res. She was a mama to a bunch of little pups and is now the eldest sister to a 1.5 year old baby and 2 other furry animals. We love her ears and would love to see them captured in your art!"

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold!

July 21, Aoife

 This fluffball is Aoife~ I wasn't sure about painting a dog without eyes showing better, and Cynthia sent me another photo with his eyes showing, but she was right that this was the better one. So I painted this one and put little peeps of those beautiful eyes in!

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold~

July 20, Gage

This is Gage, and Erin wrote this about him~

"Gage is a very smart and sweet almost 15 year old puggle. A year after my previous beloved dog had passed, a friend tagged me on a "puggle rescue" post on social media for Gage. His original Mom needed to rehome him because Gage had become food aggressive with her two small children (born after him--the usurpers!) Of course, she was very sad to lose him, because she loved him very much, and so was determined to find him a great home. I wrote to her about my home and life and my interest in Gage. We met and it was decided I might be a good fit for him. Well we are a perfect fit! Gage fills my days with a ton of laughs as he continuously attempts to steal meals from my 5 cats. He loves to eat, to sleep, to eat, to walk, and to eat! He belives his job is to protect me, so he watches out for me and gets very mad when we have to be apart. We have been together for almost seven years now, and each day we love each other more. I still send photos of him to his original Mom (including the photo of his portrait posted to your website) and we hope she knows how very much joy he has brought to my life! She was meant to be his original Mom, and I was meant to be his second Mom. "

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold!

 

July 19, Percy, the Noble

 This is Percy, who lives in the UK and travels and plays with our dear friends Andrew and Kathy and he's been growing more lovely and elegant and noble! Such great fluff! Rather poetic as well...

6x6 acrylic on wood~

Spoken for~

July 18, Max!

 Here's another face I couldn't resist~

This is Max's story, by Kellie~

"The black and white dog is Max. He died on 11/10 last year at 13. He was the best dog in the world. My dad dubbed him “a teddy bear with a heartbeat”. 

He’s the dog we got 3 months after we got married as a trial run for kids. He was kind and gentle- he sat with me constantly through both my maternity leaves. 

He was a little anxious and hated storms. He loved barking at anything that moved outside. He loved walks, and in the last year we got him a stroller so he still enjoy the neighborhood smells. 

We loved him like a child- he taught us all about unconditional love and being content with what you have.  

He was an amazing family member and I’m thrilled that you’ll be memorializing him."

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold

July 17, Zeus and Lucas in Alabama!

Every year when I paint these series, I get into a rhythm of painting square dog heads, and sometimes I need to break that rhythm. Yes, with Luna I painted an entire little body because I loved that face and fluff, but I also want to paint BIGGER sometimes!  So when this photo was submitted by my friend Michelle for her relatives in Alabama, I was like THIS NEEDS TO BE BIG!!!

And I've been working on it since a start last night... I'm not sure it's done yet, but I need to let it sit and move on to other work so here is Zeus (little guy) and Lucas (big buy)!

I did make a little movie of part of painting it... I'll post that later~

Here's what Will and Mike wrote about these two! What a great story....

"Zeus was adopted from the family of one of Mike's math students. He is a funny, feisty Chiweenie (half chihuahua, half dachshund) who runs this household. 

Lucas was rescued from the local county shelter. When rescued, he had a full-blown heartworm infection and was recovering from a gunshot wound to his face. The bullet broke his jaw, cut through his tongue, and knocked some teeth out.  While bullet fragments remain in his skull, he has fully recovered from his injuries and illnesses and is the happiest, gentlest, sweetest golden retriever mix to be found. From the second they met at the county shelter designated meeting area, they have been inseparable best buddies. "

20x16 acrylic on canvas

sold

July 16, LUNA

 SO, in Minnesota right now, it's pretty smokey from the Canadian and Boundary Waters wildfires... it is really creepy to have the air taste like smoke and to not want to spend time outside in a Minnesota summer... and the fact that my 17 year old is an expert in AQI is NOT a good thing... that he went off to work this morning with a ventilator mask does NOT make me feel like a good parent.

Dudes, really- climate change is happening, and we need to make sure we are voting for people who believe this and who CARE enough to work to fix it, if we hope to have any kind of future for our kids, which I do!  Okay, enough of a lecture for now.... It's just weighing so heavily these days-

Which is why I love these projects!

SO the dog of the day is Luna, and I wanted to paint this one because of that intense eye contact and all the wonderful fluff of ruff and fur... SO fun!

Here's what Gennae wrote about her friend-

"Luna is 4 year-old German shepherd/malinois rescue. She’s a true representation of the breeds….loyal, intelligent, and very energetic. She often accompanies her family to work where she’s learned to open doors and stir up some chaos."

12x6 acrylic on wood

$300

click here for purchase info!

July 15, Pepper!

 Today's dog is a black lab, a black dog, like my Bingo who was the first black dog I painted. I really feel like Bingo taught me how to paint black, on black... it is extremely fun, and quite satisfying, like completing a puzzle. I sketch out the portrait first, and then paint it in sections, not overlapping much and attempting to honor the brush strokes, making each stroke count.

And here is what Shestin said about Pepper!

"Meet Pepper! I volunteer with Can Do Canines and Pepper is a service dog in training. She is a goofy, fast learning, hard working lab!  Can Do Canines trains service dogs for mobility, hearing, seizure, autism assist, or facility dogs (like you might see at Children’s hospital)."

8x8 acrylic on wood

spoken for~

July 14, Valdez

 I thought this guy just looked so intriguing.... Laura sent me two photos and one was of Valdez sprawled on a chair, looking kinda sexy, and I thought about painting that one, but that would have to be a bigger canvas, honestly! For these projects, just the face works best for a one-day painting!

Here's Laura's story!

"We adopted Valdez on the very last day the Humane Society was open before it closed for the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. At the time, he was 4½ years old.

From the moment we brought him home, Valdez was incredibly loving and cuddly with both my husband and me. He had been labeled a "Hidden Gem," but we didn't realize that meant he was reactive to other animals. By the time we discovered what that label meant, we were already completely in love with him. Since we didn't have any other pets, it wasn't a problem for our family.

We worked with an amazing trainer at Trinity Dogs Training, and thanks to a lot of patience, consistency, and hard work, Valdez has made incredible progress. Today, he can walk calmly and interact with other dogs.

He'll always be our good, goofy boy, and we couldn't imagine life without him."

8x8 acrylic on wood

$275

click here to purchase!

July 13, Bramble!

 This is Bramble, Charlotte's parent's corgi! She sent a few pics and I was debating between two and my son said THIS ONE! Which I agree with! That is such a wide open, beautiful corgi-smile!

I also hope you are staying cool today, if you are in Minnesota where we are expected to feel like 100 degrees everywhere... I didn't get a Lake Hiawatha video this morning because we had to drive Max out to Roseville for his AIC camp... it felt cool out there at 7:30am... I just hope all the kids manage to stay cool all day!  It's gonna be a toasty week~

This one is a 6x6 and is available!

6x6 acrylic on wood

$160

click here to purchase!

July 12, Harley!

 This is Harley!  I made another little video as I did some of the finishing touches... I'll post that separately on instgram~

And his owners came yesterday to the sweltering St Kate's Art Fair and brought me freshly made chocolate chip cookies with the chips all melty! That's the best part of this job, if you can call it that!

Judy wanted me to make sure I got Harley's streaks- I hope I managed!
Here's what Judy wrote about Harley~

"I went looking to adopt a dog after my dog Frank died unexpectedly.  Harley was being fostered outside Bel Plaine. He was with 4 other dogs at the time.I just loved the name of the rescue group---Redemption Road. He was just 10 months old but he acted much older. He's a hound mixed with shepherd mixed with maybe husky. He loves sniffing, meeting people and finally, other dogs."

8x8 acrylic on wood

sold!

July 11, Clover~

And this is Clover~

Sorry for the delay~ I was at St Kate's Art Fair all day and am at home in the air conditioning recuperating... it was pretty darn hot!  Thank you everyone who came out to explore art and hang in the shade under those beautiful trees!

I'm not sure this one is done yet, but I am just wiped out from the day so I'll adjust later~

Here's what Tanya wrote about Clover~

"Clover is a 1.5 year mini American shepherd, blue merle in color with those piercing blue eyes. She's a petite girl, around 17lbs, and has already learned lots from her older "sister" Skye like catching a frisbee and riding in a car. They play and tumble with each other, and Clover jumps over and under Skye before Skye knows what's happening. Clover has developed the nickname "pillow princess" as she will perch on top of a mound of couch pillows, and she loves to snuggle when it's time for bed, basically saying, "can we go to sleep now please?!" "

8x8 acrylic on wood

$275

click here to purchase!