Paintings With Soul

  "Dagan," 4" x 6", commissioned portrait of my favorite kind of kitty to paint - calico! -  acrylic on panel, private collection (THANK YOU!).   Actually, I can't really say that calicos are my actual favorites, because I also totally dig on painting black cats. And all the stripes in tabbys are so much fun. And white kitties that aren't really white - they are pink and yellows and lavenders. And then there are seal points and tuxedos and multi-toed and manxes (love those tailless butts) and .....   Thanks, as always, for looking at and sharing my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com   Commissions & Inquiries   I always accept commissions - it's just a matter of how far out I am scheduled.   As of this posting, I am booking daily portraits for early December of this year. My cutoff date for holiday gifts is December 15th.    But never fear! If you want to gift a portrait and my calendar is full, may I suggest a gif...

"Marley," 6" square, commissioned black cat painting, acrylic on panel, private collection (THANK YOU!). Marley is going to make one heck of a Christmas gift!! His painting, that is. The real Marley wouldn't go so well for sitting still under the tree all wrapped up.... What's been going on in the studio? Lots of book work - fact checking, proofing and design Prepping paintings to go to an exhibition Fielding inquiries and emails (see sidebar) Editing an article for publication Breaking into the Halloween candy stash (but don't tell the kids!) Hope you have a spectacular weekend!! Thanks, as always, for looking at and sharing my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com Commissions & Inquiries I always accept commissions - it's just a matter of how far out I am scheduled. As of this posting, I am booking daily portraits for early December of this year. My cutoff date for holiday gifts is December 15th.  But never fear! If ...

  "Chanel," a commissioned painted sketch, image approximately 3-1/2" x 6" and roughly centered on an 8" x 10" multimedia artboard, acrylics on paper, private collection (THANK YOU!). It's been a loooong day, and I still have over 100 emails to get through. Tis the season, and I thrive on this sort of stuff!!   Thanks, as always, for looking at and sharing my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com      

  I never saw a purple cow. I never hope to see one. But I can tell you anyhow I'd rather see than be one.  -Gelette Burgess   "I Never Saw A Purple Cow," acrylic painting on panel, inspired by a photograph taken by  Douglas Nelson  (and used with his permission, thank you Doug !!), 6" square, $299 to the first one  asking nicely .   Actually, I totally want to be the purple cow. Because that cow creates wonder and makes others smile.    Thanks, as always, for looking at and sharing my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com     Using Photo References   Because the animals I paint rarely hold their poses long enough in the studio and leave a HUGE mess behind, I rely on photographs for the bulk of my work.   But that doesn't mean that I copy the photos religiously. Nor does it mean I can't take artistic liberties. I freely move things about, taking the essence of the photograph and turning it in...

      "Wrigley," a commissioned portrait and painted sketch of a Chesapeake Bay Retriever. The image is approximately 5-1/2" x 3", roughly centered on an 8" x 10" piece of multimedia artists paper, and shortly headed out to his new home (THANK YOU!).   HOWEVER - this one is an intended Christmas gift - there can't be that many CBRs names Wrigley, so if you know him/his family, "mums" the word, ok? Otherwise, you'll get me in big trouble!!   There are a few pre-holiday commissioned spots left - if you act quickly, I can schedule your gift giving on my calendar. Just  let me know , as I am not a mind-reader!! I love to paint friendly, gregarious dogs as though they are dripping with color. It suites their likenesses very well, don't you think?   Last week I added a few new colors to my palette,** and Wrigley's luscious, wet coat gave me the perfect excuse to play with all of them. My new favorite has to be Medium Magenta...

      "Little Man Mirk," a painted sketch, of a rescued corgi mix. This image is approximately 4" or so, roughly centered on a piece of multimedia artists paper. I think this piece is sold, but if you are interested,  let me know !!   I've got lots of emails to answer today, so will keep this post short and sweet, just like our little man above.   Happy weekend!!   Thanks, as always, for looking at and sharing my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com    

  ORDER NOTECARDS/REPRODUCTIONS HERE     "Sigh," from  "The Gratitude Series," ** 10" x 6-1/2", portrait of a silvery Great Dane Pup, done in Golden Open Acrylics on a Raymar panel, $449. And since the muse for this painting hailed from  Ohio Great Dane Rescue , proceeds from the sale of this painting will benefit them. Inquiries may come  to moi .   I had an entirely different concept when I set up to paint today. I wanted the pup smaller on the canvas, with her entire body draped sveltly across the painting. But each time I blocked her in, she wanted to be bigger. I'd rub her out and start over, and every time she returned, she was flowing over the edges.   So I stopped fighting, and just let her be.   This will be another of my entries for this year's Canine Art Guild's "Helping Paws: All Creatures Great and Small" exhibition. This is an online show that supports animal welfare through the artists' philanthropy (each ...

      I've been teaching journalling classes to kids for about 5 years now. We meet on alternate weekends in the back room at  Little Monsters Toy Store  (in downtown Lake Orion).   Not every child is comfortable expressing themselves with strict verbage or writing a la old fashioned diary-style. And many others, while interested in art, are intimidated by the idea of keeping a sketchbook.   But give them a blank book, some basic supplies and take all the rules away: ask them to create pages that include what they see in their head and what they experience around them, introduce basic art concepts and theory disguised as experimentation, and just get out of their way. Quickly.   The above is a spread from our last creative journalling session, where we painted with markers. We experimented with a variety of brands and worked on wet, dry and damp pages. We dribbled with paintbrushes, slopped and splattered, and even pushed the color about...

    ORDER NOTECARDS/REPRODUCTIONS     "Peek and Boo," 10" square, portrait of two paint mares, done in Golden Open Acrylics on a Raymar panel, $489 to the first one asking nicely. Polite inquiries may come  to me .   I blocked this painting in a couple weeks ago, but then got sidetracked with some other commissions. I had wanted to finish the horses for an exhibition, but the deadline came and went and there just wasn't enough hours in the day. (That's the risk one takes when practicing only the best sort of procrastination.)   The painting got set aside until this morning when I re-discovered it inside my in-box. I have a number of canine sketches on the docket for this week, but I wanted to work on something rather challenging for today, and these two fit the bill.   And a challenge I got! 1/2 way through my painting session, I realized some major drawing issues, and had to resketch and re-paint the majority of the canvas. Oh, I hate i...

  The pressure was on. After Monday's  "Ready for Her Closeup"  and yesterday's  "Well, Hello, Gorgeous,"  I felt the pressure when planning today's painting.   And it wasn't easy, but any means. This little lady gave me a run for my money.   I'm still not 100% thrilled with the results, but this was a lot to tackle in one day. High key, a nearly impossible angle, and lots of motion. Not to mention, the painting was substantially larger than those I typically try to complete in one sitting.   The above is detail of "Snowball," a 9" x 12" portrait of a Golden Retriever (it's a detail because my scanner is 8" x 11-1/2", so there is just a fringe of margin eliminated). The painting was done in Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, and will be available for purchase after I make a few more adjustments and tweaks.  Email me  if you are interested in purchasing Miss Snowball.   Thanks, as always, fo...

      "Well, Hello, Gorgeous," 8" x 15", portrait of a mixed breed dog adopted from the Michigan Humane Society by a friend of a friend. Ruby now leads a charmed life, glowing and beautiful from the inside out.   Done in Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, I shared multiple in process photos inside the Mobile Uploads folder on my  studio's Facebook page .   This painting is headed to the  Canine Art Guild's  "Helping Paws: All Creatures Great and Small" exhibition next month. In this annual show, all the paintings feature animals that were, at one point in their lives, homeless. Proceeds from the sale of all the artwork benefits animal welfare groups around the world, and the People's Choice award goes to animal welfare as well. When Ruby's painting sells, a generous donation will be made to the Michigan Humane Society.   I'll share updates on the exhibition as the show dates approach, but meanwhile, enjoy Ms. Ruby!! ...

  "It's A Boy!! and we recovered the onsides kick, too!!"     The phone rang close to 1am today. It was my sister in law from Texas, telling me that she and my brother were coming home with their newly adopted baby boy. It had been an emotional weekend, as the birth mother took a couple days to say her goodbye. I am so grateful for this young woman's courage, and will be reminded of her bravery and depth of character every time I hear the baby's voice.   It doesn't feel like I got much sleep, but apparently some happened right around when my alarm was supposed to go off. The Caped Crusader woke me up - we'de all slept in, and he had 10 minutes to catch the bus.   So much for the leisurely french toast breakfast I was planning - today was the first day of MEAP testing. We'll see how high the kids' MEAP scores are with a plain bagel in their stomachs and the joy of a new cousin in their hearts.   After that sort of beginning to my day, I d...