There has been a takeover of Raymond Vineyards of the Boisset Family Estates. Frenchie, the most bullish member of the family has turned the vineyard over to the dogs. Frenchie will be unleashing the story and inspiration behind his wines through a series of short videos on FrenchieWinery.com . He will be revealing the life of a rock star dog winemaker and building a community of Frenchie fans on Facebook and Dogbook while seeking out other like-minded friends to share their photos, videos and more.
Several years ago, I painted this “room portrait” for my friend Mary. At the time, she lived in a magical, elegant rambling house that she had magnificently decorated. This was the living room. Many outstanding parties took place in this house. When the house became too much to keep up with, she moved to a smaller place but had the foresight to find a way to capture the feeling of the house she loved so much. She commissioned me to create this painting. She now lives in a very, very small amount of space, but she has created a jewel box of it. Mary has a sense of humor. I visited her a few weeks ago and this painting is hanging in the bathroom…. the loo…. because after all a Carol Lew painting belongs in the loo.
Diane was given a gift certificate for a portrait of her adorable pup, Molly. After much pondering about what outfit would be just right for Molly, she selected an image she saw on a previous blog post.
She wears her outfit proudly. The painting has just been varnished and will be on its way to Diane next week.
Ana, Gabby’s person, decided to have a portrait done of her beloved toy poodle. “Gabby is 12 years old now and in poor health,” Ana told me. “She’s always been a princess and a diva.” So we went about finding just the right photo of Gabby, and the best historical portrait reference to capture her spirit. Ana liked several of the painting images I sent to her and almost selected one of Marie Antoinette. In the end she chose this Velazquez painting. Great choice, I think! We’re now sending sketches and color ideas back and forth. I suspect pink is going to be in there….. Ana says pink is Gabby’s favorite color. Stay tuned for updates on Gabby’s portrait.
I just discovered Lorenzo, a cat who is the subject of some fabulous photos taken by his person Joann Biondi. You’ve got to check them out. This cat was born to wear clothes and pose elegantly in widely varied settings. How lucky that a cat with this calling found his soul mate, and the world gets to see the creative results.
Okay not really. But an article about my artwork was just featured in Petside.com, an on-line resource for pet lovers. Writer Susan Marque picked Basil for the image because he’s just too darned cute; she couldn’t resist is charms. Check out some of the other featured artists. I really like the felted wool sculptures made by Amelia Santiago.
For the occasion of her grandson’s bar mitzvah, Liz Weingarten commissioned this portrait of his pup Pheobe and family dog Ruby. It was one of the more involved portraits I’ve done, including family photos, an image of another portrait I had painted several years ago, and lots of symbolism. Liz put a plaque on the frame with the title “Phoebe’s World”. We had fun working on the project together.
Last night, Kent and I went to friend and neighbor Josh Greene’s house for a casual dinner. Also there was friend and neighbor Ed Neumuth, a retired vet. Back in 1974, he had bought our house from Geneveve Hutchinson’s daughter after Geneveve passed away. At that time, Washington was a place where a new generation of back-to-the landers were trying to make a go of it. “Tell a story about the old house”, I said to Ed after we had eaten and were enjoying some great wine. Ed’s a great story teller, so maybe you had to be there but here’s the story. Continue reading →
The portrait is in process….I can’t show you the dog yet…. what if the recipient came across this post before the unveiling scheduled for his birthday? But here’s the historical figure chosen for an adorable dog who will soon look very much like Emperor Napoleon III.
Here’s Foggy dressed in his finest. But even all dressed up, he still had to have his tongue hanging out. That’s just the kind of guy he is.
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