Long before there were husbands, my little sister and I sat on the picnic tables behind the Lee County Humane Society. Two young puppies bounced around us. An hour later, Keeli was curled up on our couch with my sister.
The two were inseparable. Still are. The little black mutt had more of my sister’s love than all of us combined. And that’s saying a lot because my sister’s heart is massive. As the years moved by Keeli remained my sister’s best friend, patiently waiting for her to return from great adventures, moving with her to new places, meeting new friends and new work, reaching graduations and milestones. And needless to say, the dog is well documented. We all have a “Keeli” album in our photos. So in 2018 as I was desperately searching for a birthday gift of my sister, I came across a few she had never seen. But I just couldn’t give her another photo of the pup. It was the go-to gift from all of us: a print of Keeli, beautifully framed and nicely wrapped. (They were likely piling up in her closet at this point, anyway.)
But I knew she didn’t have a painting.
A dear family friend had given me one of my beloved late Morgan many years before, and I always thought it was the most wonderful gift. I had never painted a dog portrait before, but I was new a mother and full of ambition to try new things, so I found some watercolors buried in my art drawer, sat down at my kitchen table with a blank sheet of paper and a photo of Keeli, and got to work.
I did it, and she turned out better than I could imagine. I was stunned. My husband was shocked, my sister cried, and not long after, I gave it another shot by painted a portrait of my lab, Grady. Then Mom’s Ginger, and Dad’s departed Lucy … I quickly became the official portraitist of the George Family Pets.
I’ve since done several canine and equine portraits, some for family and friends, some as gifts to grieving fur-parents, and many for complete strangers. But one thing I’ve learned is and absolute truth among the people asking for portraits: their animals hold a legacy in their families worthy of being captured in art. They’re family, and often times, we don’t deserve they they give to all of us. And while my artistic interests are clearly wildly varied, painting a pet portrait is one of my most surprising passions, and something a always feel beyond honored to be trusted to do.
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