Dancing Nathan Portrait #1 is done!

Great news! Dancing Nathan's first portrait is done.

Nathan, the effervescent Chinese Crested hairless dog from Bald is Beautiful Dog Rescue, made the rescue famous when his dance moves went viral.

Now DawgArt is helping them with a fundraiser. I'm making two paintings of Nathan, and we'll auction them to raise money for the rescue. See the details here.

I have another painting to finish and then you'll get a chance to bid on both! Pass the word along so we can get people excited about helping the sweet pooches with Bald is Beautiful.

Wildhorse Ranch Rescue Fundraiser for Einstein!

One of my favorite rescues to work with is Wildhorse Ranch Rescue in Gilbert, AZ. Not only is the founder and chairman Kim Meagher a wonderful person, she's a dear friend. I just love her. She is one of the kindest human beings I know. She started Wildhorse Ranch when she discovered the plight of homeless horses in 1995.

She and her children privately rescued horses until 2000, when she applied for non-profit status for WHRR. With the help of many friends, volunteers, and donors, Kim and WHRR have been able to help save many horses from abuse, neglect, and death.

This past week, when they were travelling back from an event, someone on the freeway slammed into  the horse trailer, resulting in serious injuries for Einstein, a much-loved horse rescued by WHRR.

Einstein (pre-accident)

In order to help raise money for Einstein's care and recovery, I volunteered to make some artwork featuring Einstein. We are auctioning these paintings, the proceeds from the sales of which will be donated back to WHRR. Scroll down to find bidding links.

Here are the paintings, both acrylic on canvas with color wrapping around the edges.

"Kick Up Your Heels" - 24x30 inches. This piece is large and stunning with vivid colors. This image celebrates the energy and joy of a rescued animal, rendered in the brilliant colors of the Southwest.

Click here to bid.

"Little Sister" - 16x20 inches. This piece is smaller, but no less vibrant. It features an image of Einstein meeting his new little herd sister, Pixie the burro. The original reference photo hangs in the barn at the ranch. I love it because it reminds me of the unfailing generosity and devotion of Kim and the rescue angels at WHRR. That a strong bond can be formed between the most unlikely of friends.

 Click here to bid.

Auctions will end on Sunday night, February 1st at 9pm. Please share this post with your friends and your network to spread the word about Einstein and WHRR. 

Want to see how I made the paintings?

Click here if link doesn't embed.

Second link.

Christmas is coming!

Holiday shopping season is upon us.

Let me tell you a story. It's a heart-warming Christmas story.

Imagine, you are exchanging gifts with your loved one. They give you a nice sweater, or a gift card to that restaurant you like. You are super happy, because who doesn't like a nice sweater?

Then they're looking at you with that look. You know the look. The look that says, "You only went shopping last week, huh? You didn't think about this until just yesterday."

But much to their surprise, you pull out a good-sized package. It could even be a very large package, perfectly wrapped (because you paid your teenage daughter who's really good at wrapping to wrap it), or it could even just be a big cardboard box with no wrapping. Strangely shaped and they're thinking, "What, did he get me a giant frying pan?" or "I guess it's been cold lately, a duvet will at least keep me warm."

But when they open it up, instead of something boring like a frying pan, they find original artwork. On canvas. Of their best friend (or furbie). And it's painted in their favorite colors. And there's not another one like it in the ENTIRE WORLD.

And you'll get a smile like this:

Or this:

And they'll love you forever for being so thoughtful and creative and secretive and for supporting independent artists.

The End

For details on how to commission a custom painting, visit the Commission Guidelines. To purchase directly through this website, click here. To find prints, apparel, and gifts, click here.

St. Paddy's Day sale!

25% off all Original paintings and Custom order in the Etsy shop. 

Here's the link to the Etsy shop if you want to explore on your own: DawgPainter Etsy.

Or follow these for Original Paintings available or Custom Orders.

Just use coupon code: STPADDYS2014

when you check out.

Happy shopping!

Email me if you'd like a larger size not offered.

Sale ends March 18th.

20% OFF SALE! 2/25 - 3/3

For a limited time only, DawgArt's 20% off sale is back!

Visit the Prices page for easy-peasy transactions that accept 

Paypal AND all major credit cards.

Visit the Commission Guidelines to find out the process of ordering custom artwork.

Visit the Frequently Asked Questions to find out even more.

Sale ends March 3, 2014.

WHRR Barn Opening

I'm so glad to be in The Valley of the Sun for winter. While the summers are hellish, the winters are lovely and the weather is perfect.

I was invited to paint at Wildhorse Ranch Rescue's barn grand opening and it was a delight to be around so many animal lovers, rescue workers, volunteers, and equine animals. There were some cats too, I think, and dogs. But I was mostly looking at horses and burros. Here are a few photos of my time there.

 Photos by Bud Anderson

Along with the finished paintings:

Yeehaw!

New paintings: Harlem and Sadie

Meet the two newest DawgArt portrait subjects, Harlem and Sadie. They live in CA with their mom, Heather. Their feline sister, Rogue, has since crossed over the Rainbow Bridge, but she is much loved and remembered and forever immortalized on canvas. To find prints of these adorable animals, visit the Etsy shop.

Artist Highlight - Susie Hooban

So this summer I started a new thing.  One of my instructors at university (he's actually a big hero of mine) Will Terry, talks a lot about how important it is to share our knowledge and our understanding of art and the industry with others.  He says that holding on to information that might be helpful to the development of others' careers because we're afraid they might become too competitive and push us out of business is "scarcity thinking".  And I agree with him.  I admire a lot of artists.  And I love talking about the artists I admire.  If a client compares my art to another artist's and decides that artist is more suited for a commission of original artwork than I am, I am glad they found someone they will be happy with to realize their vision.  I am inspired daily by the art, work ethic and creativity of others, so I want to pass along that inspiration to all of you!

This month, the artist I'm highlighting is Susie Hooban.  You can find her work at Lazy Dog Art (which I think is a delightful name.)  She is located in Arlington, Virginia and specializes in acrylic on canvas.  I actually don't know much about Susie, I couldn't find a bio online.  But based on our email conversation, I know she's a gracious person.  She's a great artist and she loves animals!  If you visit her site's blog, you can read all about her dogs, which inspired Lazy Dog Art.  To see prices and contact Susie about commissions, click here.  Now, onto the art!

**Note: All of the following paintings are the property of Susie Hooban.  I didn't paint them and do not take credit.  We're here to celebrate Susie!

Here is a fan (Susie's Mom?) posing with Lazy Dog Art.  I love the size

and poster-graphic quality of the painting.

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We'll start with one of my favorite paintings.  I love how serene this piece is.

The mild complimentary palette contributes to the restful feel I think.  Such expressive eyes!

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I love how loosely she works.  The painterly quality suits her subject matter.

 Love the ears on this one!  And I love that they leave the canvas.

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Check out the fun cropping/composition on these:

 The wacky perspective here is a WIN.

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And here are my other favorites of Susie's:

I LOVE the eyes in this piece.  What beautiful details!

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This piece looks deceptively simple.  All white or all black animals are difficult.  Great job, Susie!

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The smile she captures here is perfect.  You have dogs.  You know the one.

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The poster graphic quality of this painting is amazing.  The white outline, the value grouping, 

the painterly background.  What a fantastic combination!

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 And here's my favorite painting of Susie's:

You know I love me some vivid colors and a complimentary palette.  Visit Susie Hooban at her website Lazy Dog Art.  You can also find her on Facebook, where she updates regularly.

Wake County Fur Ball 2012

Check it out!  DawgArt will be the last item auction at the Wake County SPCA Fur Ball black-tie fundraiser this year.  The painting featuring Ernest (which I had so much fun creating), will be printed on thousands of invitations and 500 programs.  To see the painting close-up, click here.  Prints of the piece will be available after the auction.