Tag: sculptures

Patti Haskins Offers Free Shipping for Plushies

You don’t have to be a plushie to get free shipping (what you do in your private life is your own business). You just have to pick a plushie dog, cat, fish, or pig from Pattie Haskins’s etsy store and enter coupon code “dogart.” Patti is a self-taught artist from Dallas who crochets these soft sculpture animals without using patterns. I think that gives them each an individual character, just like every animal you ever met. My favorite is the apple green and brown striped Dachshund. His Doxie expression is just perfect.

Lately, I’ve been reading a lot about the fibershed movement, people attempting to clothe themselves using textiles sourced within 150 miles of their homes. It would be interesting to combine the stuffed animal market with the fibershed folks and bring back the locally-sourced toy. Just try finding a sock mokey that isn’t made in China. Until then, visit Patti’s etsy store, website or blog for homegrown American plushies.

Patti also offers custom crocheted critters. You send her photos like this…

And she makes this…

Darling…omg…am I a plushie?!

December 1, 2011
Akane Takayama’s DOG Sculptures

London artist Akane Takayama is in the process of turning school children into installation artists. Over the past year she has promoted sculpture workshops in schools throughout the city and with her student collaborators created over 700 dogs. Now, with the help of the children and volunteers, the dogs get to gather in London parks, go on walks, and carry wishes for the future tucked into their collars.

These images were taken at the first installation at Paradise Gardens on June 19 and 20, 2010. Next Takayama and her collaborators will turn Clissold Park into a dog park on July 31, 2010, and then onto Holland Park on August 8, 2010. Visit her DOG Sculpture blog for more information.

During the course of the installation people want to move the DOGS,
children want to carry them off, bash them, cuddle them or just tear
their ears and tails off. Our team of volunteers spent the days
replacing and repairing the DOGS. We took the position that this
interaction was an intrinsic part of the installation, as the public
interacted the installation changed and moved in response to that
interaction. The public, unwittingly were manipulating the installation
and adding to it in their interaction and thereby re-defining its
appearance. — Akane Takayama

See more of Akane Takayam's work at her website.

July 19, 2010
Gary Steinborn’s Venice Clay Dogs

Big Dog, 26"

Any dog expert will tell you choosing the right breed for your lifestyle is crucial. Any interior designer will tell you the same is true when picking the right dog sculpture for your home. Luckily Venice, CA based Gary Steinborn has created these beautifully hand crafted dogs that could be at home in any décor.

Gary's work is influenced by the American Crafts movement as well as Pop Art and Funk. His goal is to "produce ceramics that [are] immaculately crafted, intelligent and humorous – suitable for a neo-classical palace or personal Zen retreat." Simply great!

Puppies, 3"

Standard, 7"

Minis

Pick your color and finish.

To oder your pup visit Gary's website.

June 24, 2008
Ted Benvenuti’s Scrappy Dogs

Galgos (Spanish Greyhounds)

Actually, nothing about these sleek handcrafted works of dog art is scrappy except for the fact that São Paulo artist Ted Benvenuti uses certifiably reforested Brazilian bentwood and carpentry shop leftovers to create them.

Rottweiler

Labrador Retriever

Beyond their beauty, I love their individuality. Like every dog I’ve ever met, their personalities are utterly distinct, even when comparing works within the same breed, like the Basset Hounds below. Simply gorgeous!

Basset Hound No. 1

Basset Hound No. 2

Basset Hound No. 3

Basset Hound No. 4

Available exclusively at Conceito Firma Casa. See more of Benvenuti’s work here.

Via Cool Hunting.

May 9, 2008
Laurel Peterson Gregory’s Dancing Dogs

(Bump)

Laurel Peterson Gregory thinks life is too serious. To combat this, she creates art “to lift the viewer and take them to a better place for a timeless moment.” As a renowned sculptor she knows exactly what she’s doing. Just take a look at her bronze Dancing Dogs and try not to smile. Thanks Laurel, for brightening my day!

(Slow Dance)

(Twist Dachshund)

(Center Stage)

Visit Laurel’s website for the availability of the sculptures (they come in different sizes and editions) and to learn more about her and her Denver studio.

September 5, 2007
Sarah Regan Snavely: Great Greyhound Sculptures

Run Out 2004

Sarah Regan Snavely’s Greyhound sculptures are quite brilliant. Somehow they look both contemporary and ancient – like treasures found at an Etruscan dig site. I absolutely love them and had trouble picking my favorites. Here are a few from this highly collected, award-winning North Dakota artist who sees dogs as ” nifty little alien-like creatures [who] have infiltrated our world.” Cosmic!

Bunny Hunter 2003

Couplet 2005

Learn more about Snavely and her art at SarahReganSnavely.com. Read about Greyhounds, art, and art making in North Dakota at her blog Grey Matters.

July 30, 2007
Pet Memorials: Art from Ashes

Memorial Day is for remembering our veterans. But so many images of cemeteries can’t help but bring up other losses on our lives. Our pets may never have seen the front lines, but they have lived in the trenches with us, and when they pass away, it can be difficult to find the right way to honor and remember them.

Deb C. Brown, her sister, Jennifer Bourgeois, and their best friend, Jane Giat of Amherst, MA felt this difficulty acutely as they said good-bye to many beloved pets over the years. Finally, inspired by the sisters’ grandmother’s 100-year paperweight collection, they founded Art from Ashes where artists create gorgeous glass sculptures using the ashes of your pet.

Visit their site to learn more. And read about the company’s genesis and some of their lovely custom orders, like the purple dinosaur, a replica of one dog’s favorite chew toy, that holds the ashes of the pet and the toy –- so sweet — in today’s The Republican article by Melissa Katz.

May 28, 2007