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Last spring I was happily involved in a live painting demonstration at a local street fair when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw the most interesting dog amble by. I quickly popped my brushes into a cup of water, grabbed my camera, and followed the dog (and his family).

Turns out Boomer is a labradoodle, one of those “gourmet” dog crosses, part Labrador retriever part poodle (I just got a commission for a puggle – a pug and beagle mix). But he oozed personality, and the light off his fur was quite luscious (I don’t expect you to understand this part unless you are an artist). My excitement must have been infectious - the family gladly allowed me to take a number of photos (thank you!), and despite 100 pounds of good intentions, until today, that was as far as I got with Mr. Boomer.

I still want to paint him larger – really play off that interesting fur texture, and all the blues and lavenders apparent in his coat – but for now, this study will have to suffice.

I did the underpainting mostly with tints of pthalo blue red, using glazes of sap green, light magenta, and cad red medium to build life into the layers. This will be a tough painting to ship up and send off. It’s hit a resounding note with me.

“Labradoodle Study (Boomer),” 4x8, $60. Inquiries to ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com.
NOTE ON 5-20: SOLD. I had every good intention of notifying Boomer's family of this painting, but alas, my paper-tracking skills suffer, and I lost their contact information. Hoping our paths would cross this year at the same street fair, I brought the painting. Sure enough, Boomer's kids spotted it from down the street, and came running to my booth. There's a happy ending to this story - the painting went home with it's "right" family! (And I now have their contact information keyed into my database, and that file saved and backed up!).

Thanks, as always, for looking.
And for sharing these painted dogs with friends and family!
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 web
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