Meet Jalapeño.

Jalapeño belongs to Margherita Torres who I met through a mutual friend Hannah.

Margherita sent me the sweetest story and  a dozen photos of Jalapeño  during the 30 Dog/30 Day painting challenge. From the photos it was easy to tell that Jalapeño is a dog with a lot of spunk! I knew I needed some time, (more than 24 hours) to really study Jalapeno's features and try to combine a few photos together.

After the challenge was over I contacted Margherita who was patiently waiting for me!

Here's what Margherita has to say about Jalapeño :
" my best friend Jalapeno.  He is a miniature Doberman.  When my husband brought him home, I was not too happy.  We already had a dog- an akita named Zorro.  Well that day my children named him Jalapeno.  That first night, I made a little bed for him on the floor on my side.  He cried and cried so I eventually picked him up and put him next to me in the bed.  He immediately stopped crying and I fell in love.  The year he came into my life my husband got very sick and I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.  God sent him to me exactly when I needed the support.  Some funny things about him, mostly all of our pictures of Jalapeno are with him wearing a harness.  We have to keep the harness on him because if we take it off he thinks we are going to give him a shower.  He starts to shake and then goes under the covers to hide. He is the love of my life."


I'm so happy you waited Margherita… I love the way the painting came out and Jalapeno's eyes tell the whole story! Thank you very much!


Note to my readers: If you, or you know of someone who would like to have me paint a custom pet portrait please feel free to share this link to my website www.LindaSMarinoArt.com/pet-portraits

Pet portraits make wonderful gifts for birthdays, Christmas, Hanukkah, anniversaries… or "just because you love that very special pet"

I truly enjoyed getting lost in this painting yesterday. Applying a new technique called "fracturing" and laying on thick colorful paint gives this painting both energy and stillness combined. 

Old World Classic meets New School Technique… so how should I frame this one? Suggestions are welcomed… should I frame it with a classic ornate gilded gold frame or a contemporary frame design? Choices, choices, choices… please chime in and tell me what you think.

This painting will be on exhibit and for sale at our Holiday Show at Maple and Main Gallery of Fine Art in Chester, CT.
Opening Night is Friday Nov. 15  from 5-8pm …. 
please join us for an evening of Art, Conversation and Nibbles!

Meet Marnie.

Marnie belongs to Mistie Powell. 

Mistie sent me a different photo of Marnie during the 30 Dog/30 Day painting challenge and unfortunately I wasn't able to include the photo of Marnie. It was a very difficult decision as to which dog photos to paint and which ones would create a real challenge.

After the challenge was over, Mistie was gracious enough to send me another photo of Marnie and I knew we had a winner! I absolutely love the tilt of her head and how the colorful carpet reflected in Marnie's white fur.

Here's what Mistie wrote about Marnie: " Marnie is a soon to be 6 year old bichon.  She goes to work with me - the big joke around the office is that she's the only one who loves going to work every day.   She has a title - Chief Dog Officer and she does get a paycheck (usually it's for 3 dog biscuits)  And, she's got the UPS man trained - she gets a cookie every time he comes in."

The painting of Marnie will be framed in a beautiful silver frame and delivered this week…. 

and I just found out that….  Wednesday October 30 is Marnie's 6th Birthday! Happy Birthday Marnie!


which reminds me… pet portraits make great gifts…. here's link to my pet portrait website page for more details… Linda S. Marino Art - Pet Portraits

Meet Sadie.

I had to paint this picture, even though this isn't the original photo that Patty sent..... I had to paint this picture because.... it's exactly how I feel! Worn out...

...this has been such a difficult challenge for me. And to look at all 30 dogs on my studio walls... I still can't believe I painted all of them!

 So many late nights and early mornings, working all day in my pajamas. The do-overs and wipe-outs, I can't even count. But I have to say this has been one of the most rewarding projects I've every worked on. All the wonderful feedback and positive comments from friends on Facebook, my blog and Daily Paintworks... it really is overwhelming. 

Each time I would finish a painting and send it to the owner I would hold my breath... what will they think? Did I capture the look? the likeness? is the fur color right?... each time I was surprised at the responses... and thankfully most of them turned out positive. Unfortunately, a few didn't, and that's the nature of trying to re-create not just a likeness but to get the dog's personality in the painting too.

I am feeling bad that I didn't get to paint each dog photo that was sent to me. It wasn't that the dogs weren't cute it had to do more with either a poor quality photo or I wasn't sure how to "solve the painting challenges" in a 24 hour span. I'll be in touch with the owners who's dogs didn't make it into the 30 days and see if we can work something out.

When the challenge started Patty sent me a photo of her other dog Sadie. I had already painted Patty's first dog Marsh last year as a Christmas gift for her husband (see painting below) and I was looking forward to painting and meeting Sadie. As I was studying the photo and preparing to paint Sadie, I knew I needed a few more reference photos to determine Sadie's actual fur color.... I knew Patty had post a few photos of Sadie on her facebook page and that's when I came across this photos.... awwww.... I just wanted to curl right up next to her and take a nap too.....

Here's what Patty had to say about Sadie:  "Sadie wandered into our back yard in April. She had a collar but no tags. No one claimed her from the animal shelter nor responded to any of the advertisements about a lost dog. It is a mystery. We are so happy she found us! She has fit into our family like she has always been a part of it."

Well, the challenge is over but there's still more work to be done. This Sunday Oct. 6th  from 2pm - 5pm we will be having an "Open Studio/Dog Show" here at our house. My studio is in the basement and I'm inviting everyone who participated in the challenge and for those who have been following along... PLEASE JOIN US!
Come and See all 30 Dog paintings!

a BIG THANK YOU to Everyone!
Linda

Meet Memphis.

"Linda has captured this boy's spirit so well in her painting! How cute he looks on his rug...
Memphis is being fostered in Middletown, CT. 
He is available for adoption to the right home. 

We picked Memphis up from a rescue transport out of Tennessee the morning of September 7, the same day of our 30th anniversary party. We were worried about how he would take all that excitement on his first day. The rescue said he was calm and they were right...to our surprise he spent the night schmoozing our friends and sleeping on the living room chair amidst all the chaos a dinner party can bring. Needless to say he made himself at home pretty quick! The next morning we discovered he was a 10 month old puppy who knew no commands at all. He didn't even know his name! Who spends 9 months with a puppy and doesn't teach him anything accept how to behave in a crate? We quickly went to work teaching him to play and obey. Being an Australian Shepherd mix he is hungry for things to do and has learned everything from walking nice on a leash to catching a frisbee! He's 53 pounds of bounding play, gaining 10 pounds since we took him in. He's eager for another
four legged buddy(s) and someone who will give him a job. Frisbee contests or agility would be ideal!

If you can't resist this face...you can see more: info, photos, videos and adoption contact info on his webpage. www.dianneannelli.com/memphis"