Dog Art Today

Tag: pekingese

  • Dorothea Tanning: Dog Artist

     

    Dorothea_Tanning_Family_Portrait

     

    Portrait de Famille, 1954

    My idea for International Women's Day today was to feature several women dog artists from around the world. LACMA's current exhibition In Wonderland: The Surrealist Adventures of Women Artists in Mexico and the United States seemed like a good place to look for some. That's where I discovered Dorothea Tanning. And that's where I stopped looking.  Her 101 years of creating sums up everything I wanted to say about women and art and fearlessness and making choices and sacrifices.

    I am embarrassed to say that I had never heard of her.   But she knew people weren't hearing about her the same way they were hearing about her husband, Max Ernst.  People weren't carving her name in history, even though they were living the same life.  She expressed this in a poem:

    Many years ago today
    I took a husband tenderly
    This simple human gentle act
    Seen as a hard decisive fact
    By all who dote on category
    Did stain my work indelibly
    I don’t know why that is
    For it has not stained his

    The Daily Telegraph writes in her obituary, "It is, perhaps, no surprise that Dorothea Tanning consistently refused to have children and instead lavished her attention on Pekingese dogs." 

    It is no surprise to me that her Pekingese dogs show up in her work.

    Dorothea_tanning_dog_photo_collage

     

    collage, no date

    Dorothea_tanning_interior_with_sudden_joy

     

    Interior with Sudden Joy, 1951

    Dorothea_tanning_photograph_with_dog

     

    Photograph of Dorothea Tanning and her dog by Lee Miller

    Dorothea_tanning_katchina_and_her_soul

     

    Katchina and her Soul, 1951

    Dorothea_tanning_tableau_vivant

     

    Tableau Vivant, 1954

    Photo_max_ernst_with_dog_katchina

     

    Max Ernst with Katchina by Dorothea Tanning

    Dorothea_tanning_maternity

     

    Maternity, 1946

     

    Learn more about Dorothea Tanning's extraordinary life here.

     

  • Ziggy the Pekingese Dog Painter

    Ziggy_pekingese_painter

    Ziggy, Elizabeth Monacelli's 3-year-old Pekingese, is an accomplished though somewhat temperamental abstract painter.  I am a fan of his work.

    Read more here.

    Photo courtesy of Barcroft Media.

  • Library of Congress Dogs

    Vintage_dog_horse_photo
    Shepherd with his horse and dog on Gravelly Range, Madison County, Montana by Russell Lee, 1942

    I’m featuring dog photography this week in honor of  the New York Photo Festival.  Did you know that the Library of Congress has started a Flickr photostream?  Here are a few dogs from their archives.

    Beggars_dog_vintage_photo
    Beggar’s Dog, Hoboken, between 1910 and 1915

    Polish_strikers_photo
    Polish Strikers at N.Y. Mills, Utica, between 1910 and 1915

    Catfish_shack_photo
    A Store with Live Fish for Sale, near Natchitoches, LA by Marion Post Wolcott, 1940

    Vintage_photo_dog_kids
    Children in the Tenement District, Brockton, MA by Jack Delano, 1940

    Vintage_pekingese_girl_photo
    Tanis Guinness & Ta Wang, 1910

  • Bonhams Dog Sale

    John_emms_foxhounds
    Lot No: 225 – John Emms Foxhounds and a hunt terrier on a bench. Estimate $60,000 – 80,000.

    Auction house Bonhams is holding its next Dog Sale to coincide with the Westminster Dog Show on February 12, 2008 in NYC. Here are some of my favorite dog art picks.

    Setter_pointer_tiles
    Lot No: 27 – Early 20th century pair of British glazed ceramic tiles by Minton and Hollins Co. depicting a pointer and a setter in glazed relief set in a gilt frame. Estimate $600 – 800.

    Spaniel_phesant
    Lot No: 17 – Victorian watercolor and pinprick picture of a spaniel with a pheasant. Estimate $400 – 600.

    Slipper_holder
    Lot No: 29 – Victorian pierce-carved oak and needlepoint slipper holder with dog’s head. Estimate $800 – 1,200.

    Labrador_gold_cufflinks
    Lot No: 143 – A pair of diamond and ruby golden Labrador cufflinks. Estimate $1,200 – 1,800.

    Spaniel_needlepoint
    Lot No: 33 – Victorian wool needlepoint depicting a recumbent spaniel. Estimate $800 – 1,200.

    Dog_doorknob
    Lot No: 38 – American cast bronze ‘Doggie’ doorknob. (I love the paws!) Estimate $7,000 – 9,000.

    John_avery_dog_chair
    Lot No: 205 – Sir John Lavery R.A., R.S.A., R.H.A. (1856-1941). Dog on a chair. Estimate $30,000 – 50,000.

    Antique_bulldog_curling_iron
    Lot No: 58 20th century silvered metal bulldog curling iron. Awesome!!! Estimate $300 – 500

    Arthur_wardle_fox_terriers
    Lot No: 206 – Arthur Wardle two Fox Terriers. “Anticipation.” Esitmate $30,000 – 40,000.

    Windsor_pug_collars
    Lot No: 127 – Five leather Pug collars and one leather lead belonging to the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. One tag reads “I belong to the Duke of Windsor, Blencathra, Bell Boy” on one side and “Thomas” on the other. Two other are inscribed with the names “Rookie” and “Preesie.” The Windsors adored their Pugs.
    (Melissa, maybe Emmitt needs one of these.) Estimate $2,000 – 3,000.

    Windsor_pug_coat
    Lot No: 126 – Three woolen Pug coats made for the Duke and Duchess of Windsor’s Pugs. This is one of the most beautiful pieces of dog apparel I’ve ever seen. Perhaps it was made by a royal taylor in a Savile Row shop. Exquisite! Estimate $1,500 – 2,500.

    William_walls_pekingese
    Lot No: 259 – 1925 William Walls Pekingese painting. Estimate $400 – 600. (Wendy, this is for you.)

    Thanks to the fabulous Michèle of Eurodogtraining for the heads up on Bonhams’s Dog Sale.

  • Christie’s October Dog Art

    There are many great dog art lots coming up for auction at Christie’s this month.  I’ve picked out a few of my favorites…

    Mary_cassatt_balcony_2

    Mary Cassatt On the Balcony, 1889, estimated price $30,000-$40,000. 
    Diamond_pekingese

    Art Deco Diamond Pekingese Brooch by Janesich, 1925, estimated price $40,000-$60,000

    Chinese_temple_dogs
    Bronze Chinese Temple Dogs, 20th Century, estimated price $1,600-$2,400

    Dog_walking_stick
    Continental Silver Mounted Malacca Dog Head Walking Stick, early 20th Century, $800-$1,200

    Pekingese_cloisonne
    Pekingese Cloisonné Charger, 19th Century, $4,000-$6,000