Photographs, drawings, paintings, colorings of our beloved animals, we proudly hang pet art in the office. The pieces remind us of the beauty we can forget when one of the pups pretends to be a garbage inspector: “You were seriously thinking of throwing this out?” If your walls lack an animal’s touch, consider a few of these artists’ works.
Harvey
“Custom pet portraits in pastel, graphite and coloured pencil,” as the site states. Katrina shows a range of finished and unfinished cat and dog portraits, some colored, others black and white. We love several of them. The colors in the collie she posted on May 29 pop and give the picture life, but we also like the way her portrait “Bear” uses black and white to freeze the dog’s curious expression. You can visit her website for more portraits.
The Basset Case
Martindale enjoys both domestic and wild animals, which she shows through the pieces she creates with pastels, watercolors, acrylics, and other materials; the painting “I promise to be good!” is a favorite. On the blog side, she regularly updates her progress on current projects, and one of her latest endeavors was a commission to paint horse troughs. They capture wilderness scenes of dogs and foxes and horses, and they look spectacular. Maybe she could paint your dream doghouse. Like the previous artist, Martindale uses a blog and website to showcase her art.
Princess Tank
Dawn’s style deviates from the realism of the first two artists. She utilizes digital programs to draw her pieces and many make you wonder if they are from animated movies. See the piece “Chasing Dragonflies” for an excellent example. She uses pit bulls as subjects for several of her drawings, which is no surprise since she says she has a “strong love” for them. She is a younger artist, and we look forward to watching her art evolve with age. Be sure to drop by her “Go Puppy! Art” section for an instant smile.
Mystery Dog Portrait #15
Ms. Marshall has a knack for realism, too. Various paintings appear photo-like, such as the picture accompanying this write-up. She is currently working on 101 dog portraits, and you can track her progress on her blog. One of our favorites is a watercolor of Frodo, a black cocker spaniel, that is not unrealistic, but uses a vivid color palette that grabs the eye. Her website showcases other completed projects, such as greeting cards and postcards.
Ed Portrait
A relatively new blog (created in November of ’11) for a seasoned artist. The blog is an incredible showcase of Mr. Boddum’s art, as well as his artistic process that includes interviews and looks into his studio life. Primarily focused on animal portraits, he also does abstracts and portraits of people. Many of the portraits are positioned on unique backgrounds of specific colors to help the subjects stand out. If you have not heard of Mr. Boddum, click the link to his blog and enjoy.
Mic
Drawings so realist you’ll think you’re looking at a photograph. Apologies for the cliché, but his art epitomizes the statement. He has an affinity for cats, but his subjects include humans and other animals as well. You can see his work on his website, but a better experience is his Facebook page; he includes photo updates of his current projects, so you can get a sense for, and be amazed by, his process.
Know more artists we should share with our readers? Tell us here, on Twitter, or Facebook.
Chicago Dog Walkers Reader 
