Mootsie In The Sunlight

Oil Portrait of a Boxer Dog

This is my latest painting still on the easel. Her name is Mootise and she is a Boxer. Boxers have very thin skin on their ears and hers were all ablaze in the sunlight this particular day, they also have very short, thin soft fur. This is especially true on their chest, where in many older Boxers often the pink skin underneath is visible. I think I captured the soul of this dog for under her sparse white fur you can see the glow of her heart. She was a gentle beauty and faithful watch dog. Note how the camera picks up different back ground colors with both photos of this painting, All the colors are there, reds, greens and yellows, but they will show up in different amounts based on the lighting in the room

Belle and Sadie

 

The mother of these pups wanted a painting of them together. The problem was she did not have any good photos of them together. After she sent me over two dozen photos I finally said I would come to her home and take a photo, and she said that would be great, they would bark and growl for a while but would settle down. I am a bit afraid of dogs and did not want to do that under those circumstances. So she continued to email me photos of what she could get, after looking for common poses and themes I choose to merge two photos together where  they both had on a little costume. It ended up being a great adorable painting.... of the two of them together.

Benz and Casey

Toby

The client wanted me to paint something so she could  remember Toby, and her request was simple.       " I want a painting that makes me smile when I look at it.. and I want a blue background. " She wanted something large- and she settled on a 24 x 24.  In the photos she sent me Toby was a calm and peaceful looking doggy. I wanted to have his eyes be the focal point .. and his big ole beautiful nose tilted to look like he was curious what his owner was doing.

It's a Dog's Day

I was out at the  Wake Forest Historical Museum enjoying  Plein-Air painting "The Old Well" landmark one summer morning when Allen came by walking his dog Frankie. Apparently this is their neighborhood and hang out, and the go to place to walk on beautiful days. It seemed natural to add them into the painting I was working on and I appreciate Allen letting me take some photo references to use as well. I tried to capture the peacefulness and sunlight as well as  the relationship between Allen and Frankie. It was also nice to be able to put them in the surroundings that they are both familiar with. I decided to call this painting "It's a Dog's Day" because of the relationship between the man and his dog. Clearly when this dog is around ... the day belongs to him!

Three Dog Day

I enjoyed painting this for a client who wanted all three dogs but not three paintings. She is giving this painting to one of her children as a Christmas gift.

Achilles

I always ask my clients to send me as many photos as they have so I can get to know the dog and the owner. Usually I like to get 25 or so, that way I can see the dog's personality and the relationship that the dog and the owner has. I am so glad I used that method with this painting. This dog, in every photo, was staring poignantly at his owner. Such a devoted look and expression!

The Wedding Dog

This little pup was supposed to be in his owners wedding, but at a young age he ate something and got very sick. A family member asked me to do a painting of  him so he could be present at the wedding.

Guarding The Gate

This is Rita, she is a soldiers dog, her owner is in the United States Marines. She guards the gate at home, alert, waiting, protecting.... just like her owner guards his country. It was a honor to paint Rita, the soldiers wife says Rita has some health issues and may not be at the gate when he returns this time from deployment.

Dolly

This is Dolly with her first water fowl catch on the beaches of NC.

Bodies First Swan

I tried to capture the solemn moment a young boy has when he has his first successful hunt. This was painted from a photo of my young nephew.

Anne and Her Dogs

8x10 Oil Study

This is a quick little study I did one Saturday afternoon.  I took this photo when I came to  a clients home to capture shots of her dogs in order to paint some large individual portraits. I got home and could not sit still until I got the paints out and dabbled. I took about 150 photos and this was one of the few times that the dogs actually got still. I thought it was precious. 

A Boy and His Dog

I normally do not crop things so tight, but this client wanted a very small painting and in order to get all the expression of  her grandson as well as the cuteness of the dog on a very small canvas you have to be able to work with the composition. She loved it. I loved it- so we are all happy.- My husband loved it too so that was just bonus points.

Averette Home, Snowy Memories

Maine: Walking the Dogs on the Breakwater

Bella In Black and White

Commission Dog Portrait: Bella is a proud mischievous little Shih-zu who, had she been human would have been a great little runway model. She posed very prettily for her photo shoot and we had a hard time choosing the one to be painted because they all came out so nice. This is because Bella is still young enough to  look good all the time .

Floyd: The ECU Pirate Dog

Floyd was a special commission for  "Jennifer" a little girl who was in my 2 year old class way  back in the day.  Jennifer grew up to be a lovely young lady and Floyd was her pet. About the time Jennifer got pregnant with her first child  Floyd passed away. Her mother called me and asked me to paint a picture of Floyd so they could have it on the wall for the baby to see as he grew up.  They chose the Photograph of Floyd with this big OLE grin on his face enjoying the sunshine. Jennifer was my absolute favorite two year old way back then before I had any children of my own and it was a special treat to be a part of her life again.

Nap Time For Ricco: Tricolored Light Beagle

Ricco is my brothers dog and he was delighted I choose to paint him one day when I had a rare break between commissions. My brother was really happy I wanted to take Ricco to some art shows and let him be a star.

Boxer Portrait: Cooper

This was a pet portrait commissioned as a Christmas gift to a young man by his mom. I pondered if a man so young would appreciate this unusual gift. No doubt, I was told he loved it.

The photo below is the original Photograph of Cooper that her mom sent me to paint Coopers Pet Portrait.

Shih Tzu with Orchids