"Sadie" (oil on linen; 8" x 10") sold

sold

"Sadie" was commissioned by Molly for her boyfriend. Sadie, a 14-year-old mutt, loves boating. I think I captured her happiness!

"Peanut" (oil on linen; 8" x 6") gift

gift

"Peanut" is for Maggie who won my third Instagram pet portrait giveaway. Congratulations! This happy dog is about 4 years old and a mix of toy poodle, French bulldog, bichon frise, chow chow, and Staffordshire terrier. She enjoys doing agility and going on hikes.

If you are on Instagram, please follow me (@kimstenbergart) for beautiful art and giveaways. The next giveaway is the custom portrait of your child!

"AJ" (oil on linen; 8" x 6") sold

sold

"AJ" is for Caroline.  This gentle, beautiful dog belonged to her friend who was not able to keep him; since he is blind, she knew that no one else would take him.  Caroline lives in a 7,000-square-feet house, of which AJ has every square inch memorized.  He only runs into things if she moves a piece of furniture.  Caroline's husband has dementia and since they are both disabled in their own ways, they comfort each other.

"Newman" (oil on linen; 12" x 9") sold

sold

"Newman" is for Jennifer, who commissioned the painting for her husband.  Newman is a 14-month-old fun dog of an unknown breed.  Jennifer and her husband were told that he was a border collie/lab mix, but in order to get to the bottom of things, they got a DNA test done.  As it turns out, Newman is a true mutt mix--collie, American Staffordshire terrier, German spitz, Portuguese water dog, and a few other things!

The young couple adopted Newman one year ago from an animal shelter in the tiny town of Newman, CA.  He and his 9 siblings were abandoned on the side of the road.  He was filthy and smelly, but the cutest filthy smelly puppy ever!  Jennifer knew he was her dog the moment she saw him.

Newman is super smart, which, I am sure, you can tell from his portrait.  He has never met another dog/cat/person he doesn't like.  He is the biggest lovebug and is quite possibly the most snuggly dog on the planet.  Jennifer and Newman go running almost everyday.  They also hike in a state park by their house, where he gets to run around the forest and in the creeks. Newman is basically the happiest dog ever.

I must say something about how the painting was born.  There was a good head/shoulder shot I was going to use for the commission.  Then I learned about his "Michael Jackson paw".  Only one of his pictures (puppy picture at that) showed his one white paw.  I also found out that he loves the beach.  So I pasted his handsome face on the puppy body and put him on a beach.  I also invented the outdoorsy shadows.  I sincerely hope I pulled it off.  What do you say?