I received a nice note from Argentinian artist Sebastiàn Chillemi with 11 of his dog paintings attached. All of them were wonderful, but these are my favorites. I am especially drawn to the first one. The little guy reminds me of John Singer Sargent's Pointy, a portrait I consider one of the best dog art works of all time.
Visit Sebastiàn Chillemi's blog to see more. His non-dog subjects are exquisite too.
Baltimore artist Gil Jawetz is a finalist in the Baker Artists Awards this year. Take a moment to support your fellow dog artist and cast your vote for him here. Gil paints other subjects too, but my favorite is his series entitled Human(e) Beings that explores the relationship between people and their pets. What could be more fascinating?
Contest ends in 24 days.
I featured A-young Lee’s dog paintings over a year ago. I discovered two pieces of her work on a Korean language dog art site called Merry & Happy, but I never managed to find more of her paintings. But I always remembered them. So I was thrilled when I recently received a note with a link to her website. Again, it’s all in Korean, so I don’t have much information, but her paintings speak for themselves.
I have never seen a dog artist work outside the canvas so successfully. Her pieces are clever and original without being gimmicky. Adorable but not cutesy. And they wonderfully capture the exuberance of dogs as subjects: impossible to contain. I normally have no trouble selecting a few of my favorites from a portfolio page, but I wanted to share every single one of Lee’s paintings with you. So this post has more images than usual. Visit her gallery page to see more extraordinary works with other creatures too. I especially like the hippo and the butterflies.
Twenty-five years ago, Kait Matthews decided to become an actress instead of an artist. Stage productions, TV guest spots, and film roles followed. Then, a move from her hometown of Toronto to the big leagues of Los Angeles paid off with a three-year role on a soap opera. It appeared Kait had made the right choice; she had become a working actress. But by definition "working" means waiting. And eventually, Kait began to fill her hours of down time on the set by filling her sketchbook with her own work. And that work provided her a path back to her other love when her journey as an actress began to wind down (for a female in Hollywood that usually means circling thirty). Now, after graduating summa cum laude from The Laguna College of Art and Design, Kait is an artist and feels like she has come full circle. And along the way, she discovered that picking one dream over another sometimes allows you to live both.
As a painter, Kait initially focused on people, not dogs. She was drawn to the emotion of her subjects, or more specifically their eyes. An actress would know all about that, and it shows that oftentimes late-blooming artists often bring an arsenal of expertise to their work that could never have been learned in a studio.
It was the death of her friends' dog named Skye that brought Kait to pet portraits. The painting she created of her friends' beloved Westie brought them so much joy that she realized being an artist means more than a having a new career. It is a gift, one she could share with other dog lovers, and so her company Kool Dog Art was born. In truth, though, going from people to pets was not much of a stretch, because Kait believes that all animals have souls. One of the artist who inspires her work, 19th century French animal painter Rosa Bonheur, felt the same way, and Kait features this quote from Bonheur on her website:
I was only happy in the company of animals. I really got into studying their ways, especially the expression in their eyes. Isn't the eye the mirror of the soul for each and every living creature? Nature didn't give them any other way to express their thoughts, so that's where their feelings and desires get reflected.
Or as Kait likes to put it more succinctly, "Dog are people too." Indeed.
To commission a portrait of your pet, visit Kait Matthews's website KoolDogArt.com. A percentage of all sales go to your choice of Kait's favorite animal rescues. Also, Kait has compiled her favorite dog portraits in her book Kait's Cainines. Click here to get your copy. It's a great gift idea for the dog art lover in your life.
"Me" by Carole Bayer Sager, Oil on Canvas
Singer and songwriter Carole Bayer Sager has a fascinating article in the Huffington Post about how she became a late blooming artist. My sister Sheila Cameron forwarded me the piece and then we had a conversation that went something like this:
Sheila Cameron: No fair. Doesn't she have enough fame, fortune and talent in music?!
Moira McLaughlin: I just looked at her work. She is REALLY good.
SC: Yeah.
MM: No, I mean she is REALLY good.
SC: I KNOW.
MM: But I didn't read the article yet. Do other people realize she is that good?
SC: Oh yeah.
MM: No, I mean, she's not just a singer who decides one day to paint a bouquet of pretty flowers, and then call herself an artist. These are really great.
SC: I know.
MM: Does SHE know she is that good?
SC: Yes, everybody knows! She is collected and she has shows and she has studied with mentors and done the hard work of making herself better when she didn't start out that great, but she is really super talented too. That is what I am saying!!!
MM: She reminds me of Lucian Freud, one of my favorites, and one of the greatest portrait artists living today.
SC: Yep.
MM: And I love the dogs.
SC: Thought you would.
"Steven Spielberg – Work in progress," Oil on Canvas
"Vegas," Oil on Canvas
"The Clicker (Bob Daly, my husband)," Charcoal on Paper
In her HP article, Carole asks readers to share their own stories about their second careers blooming late. Or you can send her a note at her website where you can see more of her work, including her abstracts, which are equally as accomplished as her portraits.
P.S. Her journey into painting also reminded me of late blooming artist, Kimberly Merrill, another of my favorites.
Jane O'Hara
I met artist Jane O'Hara (virtually, not in person yet) last summer when we both participated in the Just Dogs show at La Motta Fine Art in Hartford CT. I became a big fan of her work, awed by her fearless compositions and soulful take on animals' sensibilities. After the show, we kept in touch and I have followed her blog, The Animal Lounge, and become even more impressed with her commitment to animal causes. She is a frequent contributor to PETA campaigns and an ardent advocate for the dignity of all animals. So, it is my pleasure to introduce you to Jane O'Hara…
1. How did you get started as a dog artist?
I used to do portraits of people, and while I think I have a good ability to get a likeness, I was always stressed about how the subject wanted to be seen, what they think they look like! As of yet animals have not exhibited such concerns! I just love dogs..all animals. They amuse me no end so I love to paint them. I want to say something about that animal…whether its their cuteness, vulnerability, their bigger than life personality….whatever it is about them that strikes me.
2. What is your favorite medium and why?
I like to use acrylics, I actually am a fan of how they dry fast..a typical criticism. I often incorporate different mediums in the paintings too. Venetian plaster, gold leaf, graphite powder. I've used beads, pearls , broken glass and other things in the 'framing' of some pieces which adds to the comment I am making about that dog. Cenotes Pup has broken glass on the edge as this was a dog who basically hung out in a dirt parking lot of the Cenotes dive site in the middle of Mexico – looking for sandwich remnants. I also like to work on different surfaces – heavily grained wood blocks, canvas, metallic sheets.
3. How would you describe your art?
I look at animals as spiritual beings — wise, playful and full of integrity. There is a humorous and ironic quality to my artwork. I'll place animals in unnatural settings as a comment on the human tendency to impose. I paint their unsuspecting response to this and show the dignity, confusion, fear or pleasure that they might experience. I am aware of animals as the vulnerable beings that need us for their care, protection and quality of life. While I love doing animal portraits, I also love to use art as a means to help the cause of animals less fortunate than the animal companion population. A portion of my giclee sales go to PETA, and I also have and will continue to donate paintings to various causes I like.
4. What are your 3 your favorite pieces?
Two Dogs Sleeping, 36" x 48"
Listening, 6" x 12"
Dog Looking Up, 9" x 9"
5. Tell me about your studio; is it how you want it to be? Plans for the reorganizing? Wish list?
My studio is not hugely important to me believe it or not. i have worked on the floor, on my lap, a desk, kitchen table, in the field, north light, electric light, and whatever time of daylight. The studio you see here is great, a space where I can leave everything out, and you can see I do just that – a mess!
After I finish a painting I clean up and reorganize, and through the process of each painting I get messier and more claustrophobic. I usually have several things going at once. My wish list consists of time and money to throw myself into my artwork more and more. I have a studio in Boston, and here in Little Compton RI, so I am blessed with plenty of studio space.
Jane's studio before.
Jane's studio after.
6. Upcoming projects or goals for the future?
I am working on 4 series of animals paintings which I am in the midst of. I want to address the concept of animals being used for entertainment, clothing, factory farms and animal testing. I also am always on the lookout for another portrait commission. I have just finished two and am looking forward to another!
7. Finally, I always like to include artists' pets.
Meet Nellie, who, in this shot, is imitating a bunny in preparation for Easter:
Nellie/Bunny
Thank you, Jane, for letting us take a peek into your process. For more information visit Jane O'Hara's website and blog.
Artists, if you would like to be considered for a Dog Art Today Studio Spotlight email me with a link to your website.
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Garden Late Afternoon
I went to the NE*ORE*AL*ISM show at the George Billis Gallery last week to see my friend Lisa Oxley’s pieces (not her dogs but her Snowflake and her Menos Pájaro, which were both highlights). I’ll admit that Neorealism is not my thing, but the show had a vibrant LA-heightened-reality-vibe that was just right for a summer night on the edge of Culver City.
One piece in particular caught my eye, Kate Doyle’s Garden Late Afternoon (above). Gallery hopping with me is like going on safari. When I spot a four-legged creature, I must hunt it down to and classify it as dog or non. You can see for yourself it’s a joyful pup lounging on a magnificent orange blanket in the fading light of New England’s magic hour, and it’s wonderful.
Gallery director Anne Hromadka graciously introduced me to the artist, Kate Doyle, in town from New Hampshire. I don’t know if it was her Irish name or her immediate desire to discuss the dogs in her work, but I definitely felt a kindred spirit. She shared the story of one of her favorite works not on display, Dog Day (below), that depicts her friend’s dog Timmy’s first day he let loose and allowed himself to experience joy after years of abuse and skittishness.
Dog Day
I love that she thought to capture that specific moment in Timmy’s life and I admire the passion with which she still talks about that moment and the painting it inspired.
Here are several other works that include dogs. I think my favorite is the last one, for reasons any former Catholic schoolgirl will understand.
Asleep in the Garden
Diana and Actaeon
Self-Portrait as a Recovering Catholic
See more of Kate’s work on her website.
(Click on images for larger view.)
Britain's The Independent is doing an interesting Great Art Series. They recently featured this powerful and mysterious painting by Francisco de Goya simply entitled The Dog.
Tom Lubbock writes:
It's a frightful picture of dream-like helplessness and despair. It's
also a demonstration of the power of simplicity. Goya's The Dog is one
of his so-called "Black Paintings", the sequence of murals, usually
with nightmarish subjects, that the artist painted on the walls of the
Quinta del Sordo, a country house outside Madrid he occupied in the
early 1820's.
Read his full analysis here. It's fascinating.
(Click on image for a larger view.)
Moving Into Spring
Not really. Jennifer Kirk Hamilton is actually a S.C based, award winning, neo-expressionist painter. Her latest works are inspired by her two dogs and I think they are remarkable for many reasons. I love her colors and the energy she captures in this series. But mainly, I love that she looks at dogs as dogs.
Bad Little Dog
Many dog artists, myself included, obsess about getting our subjects’ faces just right. We want that joyful, playful, adoring expression we see when we look into our dogs’ eyes. But doesn’t that make the work more about us? Like Narcissus and his pool, we want our dog’s full attention if we are going to do his portrait. Right?
For Kirk Hamilton, it’s not about the dogs; it’s about the walk. About being a silent observer as her boys investigate the world around them, oblivious to her. Primal and curious, completely in the moment, exploring anew the path they take every day. What an amazing way to capture them while at the same time allowing them to be free, walking off her canvas, not staying put. How beautifully she reminds us that having a dog does not make us "owners." It makes us part of the pack.
Not Again Pooh
Mysique
Journeyman
Mystery of the New
Visit her website to learn more.
1.) That a gifted artist has been taught by experts.
2.) That a passionate Corgi painter owns a Corgi.
3.) That a dog’s face must be seen in a perfect pet portrait.
Witness “Cereal Killer” by self-taught painter Karen Howell, Cocker Spaniel and Cavalier King Charles Spaniel owner, of Hesperia, CA. To see more of her wonderful work visit her Pembroke Welsh Corgi Art Gift Store.
