Paintings With Soul

  NOT QUITE YET FINISHED - "Vintage," 11" x 14", done in acrylics on a museum quality panel, created using a photo from my personal stash, not currently for sale. However, inquiries may come  to me .      I was sifting through photos this morning when I came across an old favorite of my daughter with a friend's dog. Dear Ruby has been gone for many years but her memory remains strong, and not just in this household.   I reached a stopping point for the moment (gotta get dinner going), but you can view in process images of "Vintage" on  my studio Facebook page .   But my next step will involve redrawing the chair, correcting proportions, getting Ruby's weight properly situated on her butt, and laying down more glazes that will create a stronger sense of space.   I'm not going for an exact likeness - I want to tell a story. A story about two ladies, each weathering the indigities of age with grace and calm.    And I've go...

      This year I'm gifting monthly desktop calendars built from some of my favorite Painting a Dog a Day pieces. Ideally I'll send them out on the last Monday of the previous month, so keep your eyes peeled!   To implement, simply download the calendar file  directly from my website . I've set up a couple different ways to do this, either via the photo album or a direct link.   I am by no means an expert on the variety of operating systems, so I highly recommend that if you don't know how to change your desktop wallpaper, please don't email me for advice. Consult your computer's help files - they will be more concise, more knowledgeable and more responsive than lil' ole' me.    February is sized to fit a standard screen height of 768 - I realize there are lots of variables that could impact how this file displays on your screen. Let me know if, once you get the file installed, there are display quality issues (keep in mind, too, that ...

  Image design courtesy of  Spa Fine Art , Saratoga Springs, NY.       It is with great pleasure that I welcome  Spa Fine Art  into the Painting a Dog a Day family. Near historic Saratoge Springs Racetrack in upstate New York, Spa Fine Art is the latest gallery to represent my artwork.   As you may know, I make an annual summer sojourn to Saratoga to collect racing references and enjoy an artists retreat with a number of friends. Spa Fine Art is a favorite stop of ours - after we load up on pastries at Mrs. Londons, we gorge ourselves on the eye candy at the gallery.   Spa will hang a dozen of my paintings now, with plans to add new pieces in the coming months.   I think this will be the perfect partnership to showcase my love of equine paintings in particular, and I look forward to working closely with Spa Fine Art as we begin to share my paintings with a new audience.   You can check Spa out  on the web  and ...

    "Go, Dog, Go! (Jack)," 5" x 11", portrait of a doxie with special needs, done in acrylics on a museum quality panel, $299. Proceeds from the sale of "Go, Dog, Go" will benefit the San Francisco SPCA in California, where Jack is an "employee." Inquiries may come  to me .        A Dog a Day collector, in cahoots with her daughter who's finishing up verterinary school in California, sent me several folders worth of muses. Photographs of clinic dogs and kitties, as well as pictures of friends' pets.   That's how I met Jack.   He came into rescue with a previous back injury that left his hind end paralyzed - his family was undergoing difficulties and could no longer keep him. He went into an emergency foster home, but that home's resident dog had other plans. She bonded with Jack, as did everyone else, and he became a fixture.   Jack leads a very active life, and his wheelchair does not slow him down in the least. His Mo...

"Mo," approximately 4" x 5" on an 8" x 10" sheet of multimedia artists board, a commissioned portrait, done in acrylics, private collection (THANK YOU!). Inquiries may come  to me .        I have a limited number of painted sketch spaces available - let me know if you are interested in commissioning one.   Prices for the painted sketches start at $99 for an image roughly sized 4" x 5" on an 8" x 10" paper. The price increases with the overall size, level of complexity in the portrait and density of detail.   Send me a couple photos and we can work out a great little painting for you - or for someone you love (Shadow's portrait is going to make a certain someone very, very happy!!)   Now a break for ballet class and a basketball game, then dinner and a glass of wine, before returning to the studio this evening, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com     The 2011 Dog a Day Valentine Giveaway painting "You Will ...

  "Shadow," approximately 4" x 5" on an 8" x 10" sheet of multimedia artists board, a commissioned portrait, done in acrylics, private collection (THANK YOU!). Inquiries may come  to me .        I have a limited number of painted sketch spaces available - let me know if you are interested in commissioning one.   Prices for the painted sketches start at $99 for an image roughly sized 4" x 5" on an 8" x 10" paper. The price increases with the overall size, level of complexity in the portrait and density of detail.   Send me a couple photos and we can work out a great little painting for you - or for someone you love (Shadow's portrait is going to make a certain someone very, very happy!!)   Now I'm off to the post office to get a few other paintings on their way home, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com     Gray is Available!   My client made her decision, choosing  the landscape version of Stanley  th...

  "Sweet Poo Dreams," 6" x 8", done in acrylics on a museum quality panel, starring my a very special dog (read below), $329. Proceeds from the sale of this painting will be donated to the  Vizsla Welfare Foundation . Inquiries may come  to me .      I've known this wonderful young lady, officially Red River's Southern Harmony, aka "Potter" or "Poo," since she was a wee little pup, and I've watched her grow up into a marvelous hunting companion and dear friend.   Well, virtually speaking, that is!   While I've not actually met Poo, I did paint her mother many years ago, thus starting my friendship with  Red River Vizslas  (BTW, an AKC Breeder of Merit, how cool is that!!). Since then I've painted many a dog in the Red River family, so Poo's been well overdue her moment in the spotlight.    Just look at what this wonderful girl has accomplished so far - Poo is a dual champion in both show and field, an Amateur ...

  "Blue Sneak," from  the Gratuitude Painting series , 5" x 11", done in acrylics on a museum quality panel, starring my own little sneak, Mona Lisa, $329. Proceeds from the sale of this painting will be donated to the Oakland Pet Adoption Center in Auburn Hills, Michigan, where Mo-Bug hailed from. Inquiries may come  to me .      Today I couldn't get started on anything until I did a little bit of cleaning in the studio - it's been awhile since the dust bunnies had been herded into another room of the house!   While I was sorting through piles and finding homes, I discovered a stash of scraps from previous cut-down panels.   One of them called out to me, begging for an image.    I couldn't say no.   Hence the title, "Blue Sneak." This panel snuck onto my easel unplanned. Just like it's subject sneaks up onto my taboret and flips dirty brushes out of the water cup. And just like she then streaks off to make mischief el...

  "Gray (Stanley's Profile)," 6" square, done in acrylics on a museum quality panel, one of two paintings starring this sweet little muse (the other one was shared  yesterday ). Inquiries may come  to me .     I wanted to point out that while the nature of my subject matter dictates that I primarily work from reference photos, I make certain to also use artistic liberties to create a piece that is entirely new.   For instance, the background in the photo for "Gray" was dark and flat like the picture in the sidebar. Softening that background allows the viewer to notice all the other edges inside the painting, not just the profile edge. It also turns the eye into the focal point (since the eye now contains the largest area of the darkes dark).   I also relied on my visual memory to add details to the painting that were not present in the photograph. Hints of color inside the iris, a wash of pink underneath the lighter fur to warm up and refer ...

  "Stanley," 4" x 8", done in acrylics on a museum quality panel, one of two paintings starring this sweet little muse. Inquiries may come  to me .     I was commissioned to paint Stanley here, and I had the best sort of problem. That being that my reference photos were TOO good (this is a rare problem, but one that I absolutely love to encounter).   The photos were SO VERY good that I couldn't choose just one to paint.    I tried. I worked from my client's favorite one, creating the portrait above. And yet I wasn't ready to put my brushes down.   So I decided to start another. And shot an email off to my client that she would have a decision to make. And picked up my brushes a second time.   And I nearly got it finished. Took a break for ballet class. Then a basketball game. Then a band concert. Then dinner. Then a glass of wine. Then some chocolate.   And then reality kicked in full force.   Things will just have to...

  "Dinnertime (Duchess)," A Gratitude Painting, 6" x 8", done in acrylics on a museum quality panel, $329 to the first buyer  to ask "pretty please. " As with all other  Gratitude Paintings , proceeds from the sale of Duchess's portrait will benefit animal welfare groups - please continue reading for more details.     Duchess hailed from the no-kill group  Animal Aid Society in Virginia, a group I got to know through a Dog a Day collector.   She was a long term resident - and a favoriite- at the shelter. She survived two surgeries (to reduce her hip pain) before developing an inoperable tumor near her heart. She was buried at the shelter.   This is how the volunteers remember her - Duchess loved to carry her food bowl around. It is my honor to add her painting to the Gratitude Project and my portfolio.   The Gratitude Project, for those of you who are new to Painting a Dog a Day, is a series of paintings starring once homeless pe...