New pet portraits by Terry Albert

I have several new pieces to share with you that I created for an upcoming show. The Canine Art Guild will debut its "5 x 5" show on April 1, but I wanted to give you a sneak preview of my entries, plus a few more.

Every piece in the show is 5” square, and I found I love this small format. I really got on a roll, and produced 5 paintings, but I can only enter 3, so you get to see a couple of extras. Each is for sale for $95 framed (except for the Lab, which is not for sale).

This beautiful Viszla, Sherman, spends lots of time flopped on my couch, and I could paint him in about 10 different poses, all a jumble of toes and nose. He’s a frequent visitor, and I love him.

This one is not in the show, because I finished it after I had already entered the others. I took a photo of this scene almost 20 years ago one morning in Huntington Beach. I was taking picture of my brother Dan surfing, but you know me, always sidetracked by dogs. I loved the silhouette against the bright morning sun. These two were having a great time together. 

This Chow was photographed at a dog show while his owner brushed out his piles of fur. It’s a long laborious process, and he patiently endured the primping. This painting is also not in the show.

Tally is one of my favorite Labs, and she has been a pet sitting client for many years. As you see she is the happiest dog on earth, and I loved capturing that in this painting. She is actually a Lab/golden mix, bred for Canine Companions for Independence. Her puppy raisers kept her when she didn’t make the cut, and she is a beloved pet. I did another painting featuring a CCI Labrador many years ago for the Labrador Retriever Club National Specialty Show.

And last but certainly not least, this little sheltie is my Bonnie, I call it “My Bonnie Lass.” I adopted her from Sheltie Rescue about 5 years ago. She is enjoying a quilt I bought at an estate sale in Kansas City several years ago while sightseeing with my Aunt Bobbie. I love bight colors, and this quilt and the dog are very special to me.

I hope you enjoy my latest creations. Contact me if you are interesting in purchasing one of these works. Thank you!   

© 2010 Terry Albert. All Rights Reserved.

A new pet portrait: Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Meet Bella, a sweet cavalier who is now 12 years old. Her owner, Kim, wanted a classic style formal portrait of Bella, portraying her when she was younger. She gave me an example of what she wanted and a pile of photos.

My first challenge was the photos she provided. We can’t go back and take pictures of the young Bella, so I had to work with what I had. The best pose was in a photo where Bella was 3/8” tall! I scanned it and blew it up, but it still was only a little over an inch tall to work from. ACK!

I was amazed at how much detail I was able to get. Other photos showed me markings that were covered up by Jerry’s (Kim’s husband) hand. And the little red spot on her head didn’t show in most pictures, but I felt it needed to be included in order for it to truly look like Bella.

The hardest part is to start. I always do a wash of the basic colors just to get something on the paper. Once that is done, I can methodically start working. At some point, not too far into the painting, I have to sit back and be sure nothing is out of whack. In this one, one eye was too small, and one ear was too short. She looked totally out of balance. Those are major changes.

I love working in watercolor because you can lift the paint. I love pencil because you can erase it, and I love acrylic because you permanently cover up your mistakes! So it helps my confidence to know nothing is “unfixable”. My work is truly mixed media.

I used photos of other cavaliers to figure out the white curls on her chest, and I had Kim take a photo of Bella straight on so I could see her curls too.

When it was all done, I wondered if it truly looked like Bella, since I had only know her as an old dog. Kim said yes, definitely. And she loved the little “lozenge” on the top of her head.

The goal of any artist is to improve over the years. I have painted several cavaliers, and I think this one is probably the best one I have done. To see more of my Cavalier King Charles Spaniel paintings, visit their page on my website.

© 2009 Terry Albert. All Rights Reserved.

My latest dog painting

This is my latest painting, a logo for Adora Labradors in Ellensburg, Washington. It is done in watercolor and colored pencil, and is 15" wide. The puppies in this picture are all their pups, from a selection of over 350 photos they sent me! Bruce and Mary will use the art on their web site, and on mugs t-shirts and other items. Plus they can frame the original for their home or office. I had a lot of fun with this one, deciding which pups to use, getting a good variety of black, yellow and chocolate, and thinking up some fun elements to add, like the swallowtail butterfly, the tennis ball and stick. 

The concept is part of my NameGames line of designs, where I incorporate the name of the breed or other title into a painting of the dogs. I have done 13 breeds and numerous kennels, clubs and events in this format. 

I have enough puppy photos to last me for awhile now! I have done so many Labrador puppy paintings, that I have used up most of my favorite poses, so this is a gold mine of new reference material. The Labrador Retriever Club National Specialty t-shirt features puppies every year, and I have done that art for 9 or ten years now. This year's design is pictured here.

My next project is a portrait of three of their adult dogs, a black, a yellow and a chocolate. I will share it with you soon!

The truth about Dachshunds

I never knew much about Doxies until the past few years. If you aren't acquainted with one, you are in for a treat. When I was doing rescue (of homeless dogs) our Dachshund rep showed up at our annual picnic with her doxies. We had a trick contest, and she stated that it would be a great trick if her dogs didn't bite anyone...

I have since learned that although they are very opinionated, Doxies have hearts of gold, and worm their way into your lap and life. No wonder they are always near the top of the list for the AKC most popular breeds.

My first two, Beans and Tuffy are shown in the art you see here. Called "Heart Dogs," the outline of the two makes a rough shape of a heart. The original was exhibited at the Art Show At the Dog Show in Wichita this spring, where it sold, and I have limited edition prints available. It is small, about 8" square and was done in watercolor and colored pencil. In this painting, they are curled up on a couch pillow on my living room floor. 

They were almost 10 years old when they came to live with me. Their owner, an elderly lady, was in a nursing home, and they had been sitting in a kennel for months. I am a seriously soft touch for old dogs, and sad stories just do me in, so the second escrow closed on my new house, they came to live with me. Beanie promptly got under the fence and headed down the street- before their rescuer even left my house! In spite of that, I was allowed to keep them. I had Tuffy one year, and Beanie only two years before they both died of old age. 

Dachshunds are so funny, they will keep you laughing forever. Just watch one run, or act like a big dog, and you can't help but smile. They are pretty snotty and bossy when the mood strikes, and without a firm hand (gentle but firm) they can become little terrorists. Members of the hound group, the breed was developed for hunting badger, and digging for them underground. Their long shape allows them to fit in a tunnel. Hounds are very independent, and not necessarily interested in doing what you want them to do. But doxies are among the more lovable of the hound breeds.

Maya is a pet sitting client Dachshund who comes to stay with me. A black and tan "tweenie," meaning she is neither a mini or a standard size, Maya comes in the door snarling, won't let me touch her or take off her leash, and runs up to each of my dogs in turn and tells them off. Within five minutes she jumps up on my lap or is out playing with her new canine friends. Once she gets her ego out of the way, she is a wonderful dog! 

Desi is my latest addition to the family. His owner, Dorthea, was ill, and refused to go to the hospital until she found someone to care for Desi. They called me. As soon as I picked him up, Dorthea called 911 so an ambulance would come and get her. Desi was clearly first on her mind, even though she was so ill. He was very neglected, and needed a good grooming, shots and neutering, which I took care of and Dorthea paid for. I kept him for several months, and one day Dorthea called, wanting to know if I would keep Desi if something happened to her. I had already decided that when Desi went home, I would help her care for him- grooming, vet visits, etc. She was clearly unable, but she loved her little dog. One week later Dorthea passed away, and Desi stayed with me. A photo of Desi by my photographer friend, Melanie Snowhite is posted above.

Silly Desi is a wirehaired cream-colored doxie. Most people don't believe me when I say he's a doxie! His coat is incorrect, not harsh and wiry, but soft and shiny. My friend Liz calls him a soft-coated wheaten dachshund. He spends every evening draped across my lap on his back, all four feet up in the air. He is the happiest little dog in the world, and nothing is cuter than watching him run across the park through the thick grass, hopping like a bunny. 

May you blessed with a Dachshund in your life someday. 

For information about purchasing a limited edition print of "Heart Dogs" (Price $30, framed), please contact me at petportraits@cox.net. Visit my web site at http://www.terryalbert.com

Welcome to my first post

I have finally decided to start a blog, and hope you will stop by often to enjoy what I have to say. This is my chance to hone my writing skills, and I hope your chance to learn from and enjoy my stories. Here are some subjects you will hear about in the coming weeks:

• My artwork: Pet portraits, which encompasses paintings, drawings, logos, t-shirt designs, and trophy packages for dog shows. I also paint subjects other than pets from time to time, and will share those with you here.

• Pet sitting and pet care: I may start a separate blog for my pet sitting business, but here I will concentrate on the fun side, not the business side of caring for pets.

• My writing: Although I have been a writer throughout my career, only recently have I returned to focusing on this aspect in a big way. Watch for my first book, Your Happy Healthy Pet: Basset Hound, which will be published by Howell Books in November, 2008. More about that later!

• My pets: Bonnie, a sheltie, is the little cutie you see at the top of this page. She came from a puppy mill in Texas, and I adopted her from Southland Sheltie Rescue almost four years ago with Lily, her littermate, or maybe her mom. A blog is a good excuse to write about my own animals and my experiences with them. And there have been a LOT of them over the years. More about that later too.

• The bigger picture: There is more going on in the world of animals than just my little universe, and occasionally I will address a topic with an editorial opinion that i hope will get you thinking, and taking action on behalf of our animal friends.

I'm looking forward to your comments!