Cool Story #1: Cheryl's "Girls"
What to do with then and now.....
Cheryl ADORED her three bassets, and commissioned me to paint a trio of portraits for her kitchen. Before I could begin, her beloved Daisy passed on. Heartbroken, she adopted a puppy Lilly. I came over to photograph Lilly, and we were debating how to group a puppy, an older dog, and a deceased dog as a set. She began showing me photos of Daisy as a puppy, so I suggested we do all three as puppies. She was able to produce photos of Rosey as a puppy, so with my photos of Lilly, we had our subjects. Now for the background....
...and no background to speak of?
Because I was sure to capture photos of all areas of her backyard, I was able to plunk the puppies into the backgrounds she liked best, each with their own setting,.
A Beautiful Collection!
The portraits came out beautifully! With a little imagination and plenty of photos, we put together a trio that now hangs proudly in her kitchen.
She was so thrilled she gave me a photo of her son's beagle, Jasmine, to do as a Christmas present for him. Later, when Petunia came into her life, we added her portrait to the wall. Cheryl and I continue to collaborate on paintings to this day!
Cool Story #2: Sue's Gifts
Christmas Gift for the Kids
Sue from New Mexico wanted to surprise her two sons with portraits of their pets. One son has Ash and Box, shown here, and the other son has two dogs, Porsche and Lacy. She said at the time this photo was taken, Box's front leg was broken and healing, and stretched out in front of her, and Sue wanted to be sure to capture that in the portrait.
All Done with Ash & Box
The portraits proceeded well and in plenty of time to ship them for Christmas. Here is a closeup of my portrait of the two lounging darlings!
A Heartbreaking Loss
As I was beginning work on Porsche & Lacey for her other son, Sue informed me that his little kitten, Keisha, had passed away from tumors, and did I think she should have me do a portrait of her as well (or would it be too painful). I told her that in my experience, although folks are devastated when they suddenly lose a pet, they are so thankful to have a painting of them. I think she made a good decision!
Here is Keisha perched between the window blinds and curtains, her favorite place!