Paintings With Soul

"Pick Me, Pick Me !! (Little Nicky)," from "The Gratitude Project," (2) 6-1/2" x 3" panels which together create one 6-1/2" x 6" painting, done in Golden Open Acrylics on Raymar panels, depicting a tiny black shelter kitty. $299 will get you both paintings and a donation made to the San Francisco SPCA, where this wee little one hailed from. Inquiries may come to me . SOLD. "The Gratitude Project" evolved as I searched for a way to carry the serenity discovered at Best Friends during last summer's visit. Nothing makes me feel better than doing good - whether that be for a client or someone else - and the air in Kanab was saturated with peace from all the positive change created at the Sanctuary. I connected with a few of my friends involved with rescue across the country and shared my idea of painting and profiling shelter animals, who, regardless of their circumstances, maintain the capacity to love and forgive. Everyone I spoke ...

For the past month I've been talking up ordering greeting cards featuring one of the Dog a Day paintings. I even went so far as to paint Mona Lisa in a tangle of lights, giving you all plenty of time to create your mailing lists and get them ordered. And then the rug gets pulled out from under my feet. It would appear that the company I was previously using to manage my notecard creation decided they didn't want to do that anymore. Except that they didn't bother to tell their customers this. (You should hear the hoopla going on over on their forums! ouch!) However, all is not lost. I've now forged a partnership with a new company (FineArtAmerica) , and am uploading images as quickly as possible. And the flip side is that FineArtAmerica allows me greater control of my images - their products are of the highest quality, their reputation is solid, managing my files with their system takes less time than with my previous partner, and their cost is much lower! Which mea...

"Rio," image approximately 5-1/2" x 5" and roughly centered on a 7" x 10" sheet of Multimedia Artboard, sketch done in Golden Open Acrylics, commissioned portrait of a shelter rescue, private collection (THANK YOU!!). Also, Rio's a Christmas gift, so if you know his family, please don't spoil the surprise. Rio's portrait looks differently than my other works, I know. It's what I consider a sketch, even though it's done in paint. I offer sketches on this fabulous paper that is almost like a board - and I can size the piece to match your wall or budget or dog (the paper comes in 22" x 30" sheets). Let me know if you are interested. Last night I put the third Dog a Day book to bed!! "Come Sit Stay" is well over 100 full-color pages packed with reproductions of my favorite paintings from 2009, an essay about the year, several lesson paintings, and more. The books will be available at the end of next week - I'll ...

ABOVE: Ivie's Travel Journal includes collaged elements, decorative writing, and a black and white photograph she took. BELOW: Annie's journal page was collagedfrom a stencil she made and tissue papers. Over the weekend, we tied up the fall session of children's Creative Journalling Workshops. We met on alternate weeks created pages using monotype, stamp carving, stencil making, decorative text, 3D page construction and collage. Students ranged in age from 5 to 13, and all of them have enthusiastically embraced journalling. A big warm thanks to the parents of my students - encouraging your child to find their own expressive voice is a tremendous gift. I thoroughly enjoyed working alongside each of my "kids," and look forward to seeing many of them return. Our next workshop begins in January - the classes are an hour and a half on alternating Sunday afternoons. Enrollment includes all materials' costs - the students need only bring a blank book and a little...

Here is one of my all-time favorite paintings, "Still Life With Black Horse," 10" x 24", acrylics on gallery stretched canvas, $479. I have loved this one since the moment I shot the reference photo and began painting in my mind's eye. "Still Life" has been exhibited and won numerous awards. It even earned me the moniker of "The Lady Who Paints Horse's Butts." (By the way, there is a PG and an R rated version of this nickname.) But it is still looking for a home. Might that be yours? ( email me if so!) The painting is a great shape and can be tucked into a smaller space very easily - but don't be fooled. It has a strong presence and will become a conversation starter. "Is that a horse's butt?" Just imagine your snappy comeback! Since today I am a slave to the book manuscript, I figured that I would share one of my favs. You can see a larger version/view here . Enjoy!! Thanks for looking at, and sharing, my artw...

"A Yorkie Profile," 8" x 10", Golden Open Acrylics on an Ampersand Gessobord, commissioned portrait of a much loved and very missed Yorkie. The painting is a Christmas gift, so please, if you think you know this little one's family, refrain from mentioning a thing. We can keep secrets, right? I shot video footage of this painting in progress - once I get the piece edited and uploaded to YouTube, I'll add it to the Painting a Dog a Day blog . This should be highly entertaining given that I realized mid-stream I was gulping my lunch down, all on camera. Anyone care to join me for a turkey on wheat? Since I'm getting a lot more time at the easel these days (the kids are all over the computer every minute they are home), I can squeeze in a few more holiday portraits. Send me an email and we can start talking about how to get you at the top of someone's list of favorite peeps. Thanks for looking at, and sharing, my artwork with your friends and family...

I'm delighted to share that the above painting "Blackie," 18" x 14", acrylics on gallery wrapped canvas, one of my favorite pieces from the "Larger than Life" series (2002-2007), has found a wonderful forever home. Very warm thanks to my collector and Blackie's new Mom, who sent me her Christmas Wish List yesterday. I was more than happy to partner with "Santa" and get Blackie into her home just in time to enjoy the holidays! This afternoon I'm adding a few more paintings to my Etsy store - perhaps there's one (or two) that you could put on your list? Just let me know! or Santa, too. Thanks for looking at, and sharing, my artwork with your friends and family - Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com Timing is Everything Or so I've heard. Which means going forward you can expect to see the Painting a Dog a Day Newsletter hit your mailbox mid-day as opposed to in the wee hours. As in the past, newsletter subscribers (if th...

PLEASE NOTE: This painting was juried into the 2011 Richeson 75 Small Works Exhibition and is now available for purchase, with a beautiful custom frame, through them . If you are interested, please send an email to richeson75@gmail.com. Thanks so much! Kim "Tiny Kitten, Big Dreams (Mona Lisa)," 5" x 7", Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, depicting my new little tabby muse basking in the kitchen sunlight shortly after she joined our household. I wonder what she's really dreaming of? Mona enjoyed sunbathing immensely those first few weeks - I wonder if she had actually felt the sun's warmth prior to that? You can add Mona Lisa to your art collection for $289 - with 20% of the purchase price getting donated to the Oakland Pet Adoption Center, the place where Mona was a short term resident before she picked my son. SOLD. Inquiries may come to me. Meanwhile, if this little painting doesn't sell within a week, I'll be entering her in the Jac...

"Introducing the V's ( Power Paws )," 11" x 14", Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, depicting a litter of 10 soon-to-be-assistance-dog puppies. This original painting glows in person - it seems a crime to view it only on the computer - but in an attempt to share the level of detail, I've included a close up below. You can proudly hang "The V's" on your wall and make a donation to the assistance dog organization Power Paw s at the same time. This painting is available for $699 (don't forget that preferred collectors get 10% off their purchases, too). Last week you might recall that I painted another Power Paws puppy Rusty . Rusty's family sent me photos of their newest litter of 4 legged heros, and I got to thinking. How cool would it be to chronicle the life of a service dog through the Dog a Day paintings? It didn't take long for the details to get ironed out (thank you to all involved!!), and here is the first of m...

"Holiday Lights (Mona Lisa, 2010)," 5" x 7", Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, depicting a four month old Mona nestled amidst a tangle of Christmas lights. You can snag the original for $289 by bring the first to email. SOLD. You can order the painting on blank notecards through my Imagekind shop . Personally, I think this design will make for a wonderful seasonal card or thank you note. Feel free to browse my Imagekind notecards and reproductions - you might also find something for a couple people on your list! (Don't see what you want? that's ok - shoot me an email and I'll get it taken care of!) Want a similar painting starring your own pet? That's easy to do - inquiries may come to me . Thanks for looking at, and sharing, my artwork with your friends and family - Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com Fa La La La La I'd like to think that's what was going through Mona's head during our photo shoot, but really all she wa...

"Daddy's Little Girl, 8" x 10", Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, depicting a Vizsla pup working on growing into her legs, available for $469 to the first one asking nicely. Inquiries may come to me . Busy day at the easel - and now I'm off to edit my book. There's always something new to work on around these parts! Thanks for looking at, and sharing, my artwork with your friends and family - Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com More & More Journalling In January 2011 we'll start the winter session of Children's Creative Journalling. Classes meet every 2 weeks, on Sundays, from 1-2:30, at Little Monsters Toy Shop in Lake Orion. We'll be doing fun projects like collage, stamping, printing, 3D page extensions and color mixing. Wanna learn some journal techniques yourself? GrownUp Journalling will meet two Thursday evening's, January 20th & 27th. Wait - it gets better - Pat McGraw, renowned artist, bookmaker and all aroun...

Still in process - "Come" and "Play," each 8" square, Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, portraits of Oreo, a delightful little put bull who recently was adopted. Oreo came into the Berkeley (California) East Bay Humane Society as a 4 month old pup with mutilated ears and an injured leg. He spent some time healing, then learning manners, before finding his forever home. Which didn't take long - after all, he is a charmer, with looks and style. How can anyone resist? I'm still working on Oreo's two paintings and should have them done in another day or two, but if you are interested in one, please let me know , so that I may set it aside for you. Proceeds from the sale of Oreo's portraits will go to the Berkeley East Bay Humane Society as appreciation for the care they gave this special dog. Do you know a companion animal like Oreo? Please d rop me a line and we can talk about including him/her in the Dog a Day Gratitude Project. ...

"In the Backseat (Tucker)," 5" x 7", Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord, commissioned portrait of a wonderful wirey haired sweetheart. Tucker is a new addition to the family, at least new in the sense that last year when I painted their animals' portraits for my clients, he wasn't there. Not quite yet. Want a portrait like Tucker's for your own family to enjoy? Drop me a line and we can talk about the best way to memorialize your pet. Thanks for looking at, and sharing, my artwork with your friends and family - Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com The Kitten Snuggie Mona Lisa has a knack for finding the warmest spot and settling in. Whether it's a hamper of clothes fresh from the dryer or curled up in front of the dishwasher during the dry cycle, she's never far from a heat source. She's such a great reminder to slow down and linger with the things that really matter. I'm doing more of that lately, and oftentimes it also i...