Xander - My journey to paint this Pointer

When I lived in Southern California, some of my fondest memories were of time spent with Margaret at the dog shows.  Usually (not always) she showed male Irish setters.  Usually (not always) I showed female Irish setters.   There were times we showed each others dogs - the stories I could tell there (but I won't).

Margaret stepped outside of our box when she acquired an English Pointer named Xander.   As an artist, Pointers stop me in my tracks.  Their sleek lines and graceful movement are breathtaking.   I absolutely love pointers.   Xander was the kindest dog.  I don't ever remember him having a mean bone in his body (other than the time he chomped on a ground squirrel at a hunt test - but he was a sporting dog). Margaret knew I was waiting for the day she would say, "It is time to paint Xander."   That day came and I couldn't have been more excited.   

We sat down and talked about the painting and looked at his reference photos.   A little back story here - Xander and our boy, Drew (Bling's sire) were hunt test buddies (both boys are gone now).  The two boys were well acquainted from hanging out at the dog shows together.   To our delight at a local hunt test, Xander and Drew were in a brace together.    Margaret was handling Xander, Rich was handling Drew, and I was manning the camera with a telephoto lens.   When the handlers were instructed to release their dogs, Xander and Drew looked at each other and took off running.   I could see it in the lens.  If they could have spoken, they would have told each other "GAME ON".   Those two boys spent more time out running each other on the way to the bird field than getting to the bird field.   At one point, Drew had he lead.   He was so excited.  Xander stopped to relieve himself - he knew there was no contest when it came to speed.   Drew was lengths ahead of Xander - at least for a little bit.   Xander put it into full gear and literally left Drew in his dust.  Margaret, Rich and I laugh about it to this day.   When discussing Xander's painting compositionally, Margaret thought it would be fun to put Xander and Drew as cameos hunting in the painting and use the actual photos from the hunt test as the background.   What a fun idea.   When you look at the painting you'll see the two boys thinking about getting to business.   At the end of that day - they both did get legs towards their Junior Hunter titles - which both dogs did obtain by the end of the weekend.   

Thank you Margaret for having me paint your boy.   He is always in my heart.

A painting of Rogan

Rogan is such a cool dog.  He shows us what can be done with an Irish Setter.   He has beauty, brains and a loving gentle personality.

It always is so sad when people see me with one  of my dogs and say (something like this) - "Oh, I used to have one of those when I was a kid.  They are such stupid dogs."   It is always awkward - do I respond negatively as their statement is insulting, or do I try to be kind.   The kindness wins out everytime.  But, there is a little voice screaming inside me trying to get out. 

Irish Setters are very smart dogs.  Do they have a lot of energy?  Well, yes, they are sporting dogs - bred to work the field all day.   They have to  have the drive and build to do so.   As they get older, they quiet down.  Just like we do.   I remember as a child jumping on the bed with gusto and glee.  It was awesome, it was exhilarating.   Would I do that now?  No way - I'd  probably fall off  and break my leg or something.   Ha Ha.  Point is, Irish Setters are very smart dogs and can accomplish whatever we ask of them.   It comes down to the same thing for all dogs, the more time we spend with them, the more they are trained and socialized.   Our dogs, regardless of the breed, can do so much - it is up to us.

I asked Jeanne, Rogan's owner, to share a little bit about him and this is what she shared:

      GCh Ch Roclyn Rockafella, CD BN RE CGCA (Rogan) is a sweet, loving boy who excels in both the show ring and in performance events.

Thank you Jeanne for having me paint your boy.   It was my pleasure.   Below are the reference photos I took of him for the painting (plus one taken by another party).  It was a hard choice to decide which photo would be the primary reference photo.   When we are having a challenge  picking the photo for the painting, I like to put the top choices side by side.  It helps the elimination process.

Sir Finn - A portrait of an Irish Setter

This was such a fun painting to do - well - I feel like a broken record saying this, but I never tire of painting people's animals for them.   It just touches my heart.

This is Finn.   His owner wanted a standing painting of him from the very beginning.  In the primary reference photo he was pulling down on his tail a bit.  I had to laugh when she asked me to fix the tail (and she did have a great photo of his top line and tail as another reference photo).  So, the reason I had to laugh - my dogs all pull down on their tail when I am showing them if I grab the tip of their tail.    I've never trained them to hold their tail out by holding the tip of it.  If I try to pull on the tip of their tail, the tuck their hiney down and it is laughable.  I had a judge pull Jewel's tail once and Jewel fiercly tried to wag it out of the judge's grasp.   No, we didn't win, but the judge did laugh at Jewel's antics.   Finn has a lovely top line and tail set.   We most certainly did need to show that in the painting!

Sir Finn is my very special heart boy.  In this painting he was just 2 years old.  He is now 3 and has earned 6 titles.  His  reg. name is CH Captiva One Last Time BN,RN,RA,THDN, CGC.   Sir Finn Excels at his therapy work and has a real bond with Alzheimer patients.  He was with my mom when she passed away last year and it was so very amazing how gentle he was with her and is with other patients.  He wants to please me with everything he has within himself, whether it be obedience or just cuddling.  He is a true gentlemen.  In agility classes, he listens and stay with me but is now getting too fast for me so we will see what this brings.  He has a heart of pure gold and is so very calm .  Even the day we brought him home from Canada,  he, a 10 week old puppy, calmed my very sick Irish, Liam!  Sir Finn has never found a person or critter he has not liked no matter what they do or say.  There will never be another Finn.  I do thank Dawn Secord for capturing him so amazingly and in a few more year hope to have a head portrait of him.

Thank you Rita for having me paint your beautiful boy!

Sir Finn - A portrait of an Irish Setter

This was such a fun painting to do - well - I feel like a broken record saying this, but I never tire of painting people's animals for them.   It just touches my heart.

This is Finn.   His owner wanted a standing painting of him from the very beginning.  In the primary reference photo he was pulling down on his tail a bit.  I had to laugh when she asked me to fix the tail (and she did have a great photo of his top line and tail as another reference photo).  So, the reason I had to laugh - my dogs all pull down on their tail when I am showing them if I grab the tip of their tail.    I've never trained them to hold their tail out by holding the tip of it.  If I try to pull on the tip of their tail, the tuck their hiney down and it is laughable.  I had a judge pull Jewel's tail once and Jewel fiercly tried to wag it out of the judge's grasp.   No, we didn't win, but the judge did laugh at Jewel's antics.   Finn has a lovely top line and tail set.   We most certainly did need to show that in the painting!

Sir Finn is my very special heart boy.  In this painting he was just 2 years old.  He is now 3 and has earned 6 titles.  His  reg. name is CH Captiva One Last Time BN,RN,RA,THDN, CGC.   Sir Finn Excels at his therapy work and has a real bond with Alzheimer patients.  He was with my mom when she passed away last year and it was so very amazing how gentle he was with her and is with other patients.  He wants to please me with everything he has within himself, whether it be obedience or just cuddling.  He is a true gentlemen.  In agility classes, he listens and stay with me but is now getting too fast for me so we will see what this brings.  He has a heart of pure gold and is so very calm .  Even the day we brought him home from Canada,  he, a 10 week old puppy, calmed my very sick Irish, Liam!  Sir Finn has never found a person or critter he has not liked no matter what they do or say.  There will never be another Finn.  I do thank Dawn Secord for capturing him so amazingly and in a few more year hope to have a head portrait of him.

Thank you Rita for having me paint your beautiful boy!

Getting the Point - a new limited edition print

This is my newest print release.  Sometimes the most difficult thing for me to do is to come up with a name for the painting.   So, thank you to Karolynne for the suggestion of the name, Getting the Point!

Getting the Point started out as an idea to change up my style a little bit.  Almost like wanting a new hair style.  The change folks that are familiar with my work will notice is that the back ground is different.   The colors are more muted and a little less detailed.  My goal was for the painting to be all about the dog and less about what was going on around the dog.

I started with a sanded board and did a light layer of pastel that was then brushed with turpenoid to create an under painting that was more like a watercolor painting.   Once that layer dried, I began layering subtle dry layers of pastel.  Those layers were "smudged" with my fingers and actual paint brushes to feather out any significant detail.

For the dog in the painting, the color was strong and detailed as usual.  The photo of this dog was taken while she was out in the field working.  I saw the reference photo and knew immediately that I had to paint her.  To date, all of my Irish Setter hunt scenes have featured a male dog.  So, it was thrilling to have a female to add to the collection.  I love seeing the dogs doing what comes naturally.  The pheasant in the painting was photographed by me, out in the field, a few years earlier.   In an ideal scenario the pheasant would have been further away from the dog.  However, to keep the gaze of the dog correct and keep the subjects as up close and personal as possible, the pheasant needed to be placed closer to the dog.

The original painting sold at a show.  It happened so quickly.   I hadn't had time before the show to take the painting in to be professionally photographed for reproductions.   Fortunately, the reproduction folks were able to work with some images I'd taken of the painting, so we were able to put the painting into print.

Hope you like this new painting and would love to hear your feedback on the back ground!  The prints are now available on my website at http://www.dawnsecord.com  specifically http://www.dawnsecord.com/printsforsale.html  or call me toll free at 866-393-7111.

Have a great day!

Irish Setter Pup

This is an example of a mini painting. The painting measures approximately 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" unframed. The model for this painting is our dog, Faith. Faith has this favorite toy that is really a giraffe.

For the painting, I simplified the toy and added some stitching that is not actually visible on the toy to make the toy more old fashioned looking. The little giraffe toy is now about 18 months old and weathered - but still her favorite!

The painting is for sale. Hope you enjoy it. It is titled, "Mine".

Camping at Laguna Beach

We decided to take out dogs and go to the beach for a few days. I took a few paintings with me that are works in progress. It has been so nice and quiet to work down here. tonight we had an absolutely gorgeous sunset. We took a walk down to the beach on Friday and found there was a pod of Dolphin about ten feet off shore. Some other beach goers said they were mating. It was very interesting to watch. They kept a very leisurely pace and going in large circles. Not sure what they were doing, but it was a fabulous opportunity to see them so up and close. We had a great time at the beach, was able to paint very long hours without the usual distractions, had fun with the dogs, and wished we could have spent more time there!

BEST IN SHOW - Great Dane Painting

"A Great Moment" was awarded BEST IN SHOW at the Irving Art Association 2011 3rd National Unconditional Love Juried Pet Show. The exhibit runs through September 2011.

Prints of the painting are available on my website at http://www.dawnsecord.com/printsforsale.html

Thanks for taking a peek!