Forever

Dogs become part of most families. They occupy a place in the heart. Dogs brim with unqualified affection--they love you no matter what. Dogs sense our moods and are eager to please. They are playmates for our children and companions for everyone. Dogs become like our children or siblings, so omnipresent they're missed terribly. It's no surprise how much we grieve once they are gone.

"Forever," oil on panel, 2017

A while back after a young girl's dog became ill and had to be euthanized, a friend of her family commissioned a portrait of the girl and the dog as a keepsake. The two had been inseparable since before the little girls started school, and she missed her friend terribly.

Although for most commissions I require my own photographs (and plenty of them) to supplement life sessions, that was obviously not possible, The snapshots available were adequate, though, if not detailed. 

Using those reference snapshots and a limited palette I painted "Forever" in oil on a 9x12 panel. The challenge was to focus on the tenderness of the young girl and the serenity and intimacy between two. Another was to render the shaggy fur and bulky sweater believably without overworking them. The patron's young friend was reportedly delighted with the picture.