Paintings With Soul

"Poofus," a contour doodle, 9" x 12", ink and paint on bristol board, private collection (THANK YOU!). As always, inquires may always come directly  to me .  Another busy day, but this one I anticipated, which somehow makes things better! Yoga-ed, grocered, lunched with The Man Child, ran an errand for The Caped Crusader and helped The Princess pack and ready for this weekend's dance competition. I'd love to lay my head down now, like Poofus, and take a quick nap. Thanks, as always, for following along with my artwork! Enjoy your weekend, warmly, Kim   ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com

    Wow! How did another month whip by? Thanksgiving is just around the corner, I can't believe it!   Here is your November calendar boy, Percy. He'll do anything for a nibble of turkey......   To implement this month's desktop calendar, simply download the 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, don't email me for advice. Instead consult your computer's help files - they will be more concise, more knowledgeable and more responsive than I could ever hope to be.    I've sized this to fit a standard screen height of 768 - I realize there are lots of variables that could impact how the file displays on your screen. Let me know if, once you get the file installed, there are di...

      "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    

FROM TOP: "Schatzi's Kerchief (Corgi Study)," 6" x 8", corgi pet portrait , acrylic on board, $219; "Pongo (Beagle Study)," 5" x 7", beagle dog portrait , acrylic on board, $165. BOTH SOLD. I was certifiably insane for a small window of time yesterday, and asked you to submit photos for consideration for today's Dog-a-Day painting. I pulled in mountains of emails, and every single one deserved to be painted. I went to bed scratching my head - what on earth had I done? I wish I could have whipped out 50 paintings today, but alas, I am a mere human. Fighting off a cold, at that (as are all the Santini's). So today I'm giving you only two, but with the promise that I will have more BONUS! Dog-a-Day days in the future. Schatzi and Pongo's families get first dibs on these paintings, but after that it's a free-for-all. Inquiries may come to ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com . Thanks, as always, for your time in looking at, and...

"Silly Dilly," 6" x 8", commissioned corgi dog portrait , private collection (THANK YOU!). This painting had a lot of wet-on-wet work, meaning that the majority of the piece was completed in one pass, before the paint had a chance to dry. I went back into the face multiple times, adding additional layers of paint, but was able to leave the remaining bulk of the surface alone. I prefer working wet-into-wet because it allows for a natural sort of color harmony to build up. It also gives me the opportunity to play with soft, disappearing and hard edges. Thanks, as always, for looking. And for sharing these paintings with your friends and family, Kim

FROM TOP: "Corgi Laugh," 4" x 6", corgi dog portrait, acrylic on canvasboard; "Big Fella (Great Dane)," 4" x 6", fawn great dane portrait, acrylic on canvasboard. Inquiries may always come to ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com . I am whipped. Field day at the elementary school, a picnic at the middle school, a meeting with a client, a quick run to the art supply store (new brushes! is it Christmas?!), a stop at the post office to load up on stamps for next week's postcard mailing, a short visit with a good friend/brilliant artist, another stop to view a new show at a local gallery, last minute math tutoring with my teenager, a season finale soccer game (we won!! and Domenic played so well....) followed up by the teams' awards ceremony, then a quick load of laundry, a quiet dinner with my hubby (at 10pm), and a glass of wine accompanying a trial run with the aforementioned new brushes. Tomorrow it's a different routine, but the same...

"Corgi Butt," 6" square, corgi pet portrait in acrylic on canvasboard, $135 to the first buyer. Inquiries may always come to me at ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com . SOLD. Who says a portrait has to be of the animals' face?! There are layers of glaze and very loose brushwork in this painting. It reads so nicely in person, the juicy surface just saturated with gestural marks and harmonious grays. I was reading yesterday about how one correct brush stroke can relay far more information than the most carefully rendered (ie invisible) blending. This painting is my take on that concept. Thanks, as always, for looking. And for forwarding these paintings to your friends and family. See you Monday, Kim Kimberly Kelly Santini http://www.turtledovedesigns.com/ distinctive pet portraits & 4-legged paintings http://www.paintingadogaday.com/ come. sit. stay. enjoy the art. Founding member of the Canine Art Guild http://www.canineartguild.com/ the gateway to canine art on the ...

Today you get two wonderful little pet portraits . I'll let them speak for themselves. "Sadie," 5x7, commissioned corgi pet portrait in acrylic on canvasboard. "Derby," 6x8, commissioned grayhound pet portrait in acrylic on canvasboard. Both of these pieces are destined as holiday gifts, and are going to a long time dog-a-day reader who has become a good friend (thank you, on both counts!). Yes, it might seem odd to be painting holiday gifts already, but I've been booked for the year's end since July. I even went back and double booked, and based on the interest, could have triple booked. Except that wouldn't have allowed any time for sleep, and I sorta need at least a little bit of that. So, in the days to come, you may be getting one painting. Or you might get two. Some have to be kept secret, so I cannot post them all. But trust me - I will be VERY busy here in the studio. Good thing the holiday season gets rung in these days with Halloween choco...

“Archie,” 6” square, commissioned mixed breed pet portrait in acrylic on canvasboard, private collection (THANK YOU!). This painting celebrates a return to exuberant color, something I have missed the last few days. Archie’s orange coat with dark points was the perfect foil to mix strong color. And the brighter color goes perfectly with this little guy’s tenacity. (Don’t you love that swash of green across his cheek?) Aa a puppy, Archie and his siblings were found in a dumpster. Archie was fostered for about a year and a half until he finding his forever home. When his adoptive mother moved into assisted living, he came to live with my client (her daughter), where he has thrived the last 6 years, even becoming a certified therapy dog. And now he can add cancer survivor to his list of accomplishments – Archie lost a leg in November 2006 to a mast cell tumor. That’s why Archie’s grinning – despite getting dealt the occasional crummy hand, he still comes out ahead. Thanks, as always, for...

“Blue,” 5” x 7”, acrylic mixed breed portrait (definately some corgi in there!) on canvasboard, private collection (thank you!). It’s always a little disconcerting when I am asked to paint a dog with two different colored eyes. Especially when the only photos I have to work from have possessed “red eyes.” But sometimes that’s all the client may have (darned those point and shoot cameras! If you really want a nice photo of your dog (or anything, for that matter), turn off the flash and use natural lighting whenever possible!!). Anyways, back on track. The values that result from one dark and one light eye always seem to make the painting seem off balance. So this time I compensated by placing the lighter eye closer to the middle of the canvas than the darker one. It turned the blue eye into the focal point, which seemed fitting, given this dog’s name. Again, lots of loose brushwork, yummy glazes, and gooey paint all working together to convey Blue’s steady gaze. Thanks, as always, for l...

"Addie," welsh corgi portrait in acrylic on canvasboard, 6x8. SOLD. As always, thanks for looking, Kim Kimberly Kelly Santini www.turtledovedesigns.com distinctive pet portraits & 4-legged paintings

Corgi study, 6x8, dog painting in acrylic on canvasboard, $80. Inquiries to ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com SOLD. Kim Kimberly Kelly Santini www.turtledovedesigns.com distinctive pet portraits & 4-legged paintings