Paintings With Soul

"Roxy)," 18" x 24" x 1", acrylic on museum quality panel. This is a commissioned portrait done posthumously and is in a private collection (thank you CW!), however I can work similar magic with your pet and your photos. Interested parties may   reach out to me ; commissioned portraiture starts at $499 Thank you so very much for your interest in my work. I worked on Roxy for about a month before delivering her top secret style, for a fabulous reveal. I am particularly grateful, because in this instance, Roxy's portrait is the second piece of mine this family owns. While the circumstances of their return weren't the happiest, they were utterly delighted in the end to have a wonderful touchpoint for their girl. And I was honored to be the artist entrusted to do so. I have a track record of delivering well over 1000 portraits to satisfied customers since 2001. And lucky you - I can squeeze one more project into July if you reach out now; otherwise...

A process video from 2010 featuring two Frenchies  Watching this video was quite the step back in time! In order to make these sorts of films the camera was set up - and not touched - for days. In some households that wouldn't be an issue, but in this one, it was a ginormous challenge. Because as soon as the camera was set up, someone needed to get into the closet behind it. Or a dog would come ramming into the tripod. Or I would forget it was there and back straight up into it. The real life hazards of filming at home. On top of that, I had to remember to turn the camera off when I left the easel (to take a phone call, lock a kid out of the house, set dinner to burning on the stove) and, most critically, turn it back on when I returned. You'll see a shining example at about the 56 second mark when I forgot to do just that. I spend a lot of time laughing at myself. It's a coping mechanism. My process has changed some in the last 9 years...

"Oliver," image approximately 5-1/2" square roughly centered on a 9" x 12" bristol board, acrylics, commissioned portrait of a black French Bulldog. Oliver has a home (thank you very much!), but I do have a few remaining spots for painted sketches similar to his available - details on reserving your spot are below. Email me . Thanks for following along with my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

"Poppy Gray," 12" x 16", dog portrait of my favorite little Frenchie, my live painting project from last Friday. Poppy is acrylics on museum quality panel (and he has a lovely home, thank you so very much!). All inquiries may  come to me . What a week I had in Louisiana!  First off, it was four days of herding cats, err, students. They were fantastic at pushing paint and excelled at keeping my strength up (grits and bread pudding and fresh seafood, baby!). I don't think I've ever had a group that bonded immediately and laughed so hard. Then I got a whirlwind introduction to New Orleans courtesy of the real Stella Gray. More extraordinary tastes combined with new friends, live music, a moonlit walk along the Mississippi, and beautiful objects made for an excellent cap to my week. Many many thanks to the Louisiana Art & Artists Guild for hosting the workshop, my students for putting up with me, and the remarkable Diann...

"Poppy Puppy," 12" x 16", dog portrait of a delightful little Frenchie. Poppy is acrylics on museum quality panel (and he has a lovely home, thank you so very much!). All inquiries may  come to me . Poppy will be traveling with me to Louisiana this weekend. I will lead a fearless group of painters on a 4 day color adventure in Baton Rouge, and then on Friday the show will get moved to New Orleans, where I will paint and mingle with visitors to AKA Stella Gray . And get to meet the inspiration behind the painting, as Poppy is the head honcho at the gallery. Stop by and visit, either in person or on my Facebook page . I'll be posting updates all week long. And if you want to paint with me, my last class of the year is a crash course in color, and it will be in Ann Arbor October 22-23 . Thanks, as always, for following along with my artwork, Warmly, Kim  

Detail of a nearly finished but still in process portrait, "Poppy Puppy," 12" x 16", pet portrait of a delightful little Frenchie. Poppy is acrylics on museum quality panel (and he has a lovely home, thank you so very much!). All inquiries may  come to me . Every day is busy here, but today seemed even more so. Got more prep work done for next week's 4 day painting workshop in Baton Rouge, created new demo pieces and then taught journaling class tonite (I accidentally mailed all my demos for today's class to Baton Rouge as part of the workshop inspiration - DUH!), picked up new glasses (and popped a couple ibuprofin, as my eyes are having a tough time adjusting to the new prescription), did 6 loads of laundry (the kids finally brought towels down from their rooms!), and took The Princess resale shopping/thrifting (no new dolls discovered, but she snagged a super cute lace top for $5!). Thanks, as always, for following along wit...

IN PROCESS "Poppy Puppy," 12" x 16", acrylics on a museum quality panel, depicting the most perfect Frenchie ever, Poppy has a home ( and what a magnificent one it is !), but I am always happy to talk about creating a custom painting just for you - inquires may come directly to me . Oh, and in process pics are here . (PS, I couldn't love that periwinkle in the background shadow any more. Here's hoping I can figure out a way to marry it to the rest of the painting, because right now it's just a tad too saturated.) The Big Easy I have really behaved myself, because Dianna (A.K.A. Stella Gray) and I have been talking for moons about adding my artwork to her bohemian lifestyle offerings. There were all sorts of things rearing their sometimes ugly sometimes painfully beautiful heads, and so we just bid our time. But now, my pretties, now is the time! (and I am planning a Wizard of Oz series of doll paintings, in case you were los...

  ORDER NOTECARDS/REPRODUCTIONS     "Roxy," 8" x 10", portrait of a little black French Bulldog, done in Golden Open Acrylics on an Ampersand Gessobord. This one's not for sale - she's already got a most excellent home.   However, I know there will be those wanting something similar, so just  email me  and we'll put together a killer project  just for you .   This is the live demonstration painting I did on Saturday at Raining Cats and Dogs  in Frankenmuth, Michigan. I moved a good hunk of my studio onto their front porch, and set up for an idyllic day of pushing color about and chatting it up with passers-by.   For the record, I am so pleased that they invited me to hang my artwork in their store AND allowed me to come work with them for a day. I can't wait to do it again.    If you didn't make it up this weekend, that's ok - my work is there indefinately, and I will regularly bring up new paintings, too. ...

"Billie's Sweater," 5" x 7", portrait of a French Bulldog, yet another installment in the "Black and Whites" series. This piece was done in Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, and is looking for a new home. The painting is $289 plus applicable shipping and handling. Inquiries may always come to me . Guess I've been on a roll lately with all the black and white paintings. Sometimes I get obsessed with a particular idea and just can't let go; I've been having a jolly good time painting these, so why should I?! I'm also learning a lot. Working in series' is a great way to explore a concept in greater depth. And based on all the muses you've been emailing me about, I'll have plenty of material to keep this series going strong. Thanks so very much for following along with my artwork! Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com PS Here's another "Black and Whites" painting! My goal with these pieces is to de...

"Frenchies," 8" x 10", acrylic on Ampersand Gessobord, commissioned portrait of two French Bulldogs, a work in process. Want to commission a portrait of your own? inquiries (sketches starting at $29, paintings at $209) may always come to me . This painting turned out even better than it looked inside my head. It doesn't always happen this way, but I am delighted with the color, loose modelling, and expression on Pierre and Claude's faces. I did create the process on video, however there was one 1/2 hour segment near the end where I neglected to turn the camera on after a potato chip break. I'll get the video edited and up onto the blog asap. And yes I'm going to ask one more time before the weekend: please vote 5 gold stars for Painting a Dog a Day - we remain in 2nd place by about 40 votes: http://www.dailypainters.com/blog/contest You are invited to share the link with your friends and family and encourage them to do the same. One of my girl...

"Frenchies," 8" x 10", acrylic on Ampersand Gessobord, commissioned portrait of two French Bulldogs, a work in process. Want to commission a portrait of your own? inquiries (sketches starting at $29, paintings at $209) may always come to me . Busy day today. I am on the exhibition committee for the Michigan Thumb Area Exhibition, a juried show that celebrates it's 50th year this summer. Today myself and other committee members spent the afternoon at our local cable channel, recording two programs highlighting the history of this particular show and the importance of art in everyday lives. It was intended for our programs to include demonstrations, but we got so into our conversations that it was decided the demos would become separate programs of their own. Which means I'll head back with my paints another day. But meanwhile I returned to the studio after dinner and blocked in this double portrait, the piece I had intended to start earlier. I am eager to...

FROM TOP: "Marshmallow," 6" x 8", French Bulldog pet portrait , $219; "Abbey," 4" x 8", Papillion dog portrait , $165. Both paintings in acrylic on canvasboards. Inquiries to ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com . Both paintings SOLD. With these paintings, I am ready to begin work on a new collage of dog-a-day breeds. Details to follow, but a huge thanks to those dog-a-day readers who stepped up and shared photos to help make this project complete. Thanks, as always, for looking. And for sharing these paintings with your friends and family. See you tomorrow, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com http://www.turtledovedesigns.com/