You see, we have been trying to conceive a child for the last three years, undergoing infertility treatments for half of that.  It has been a long and arduous journey, that has taken it’s toll on me emotionally.  So for the last six months we’ve been heavily weighing our options and seriously considering adoption.  A couple weeks ago we concluded that rather than undergo anymore treatments at this time, we are going to try and adopt an infant.

As many of you know adoption isn’t cheap, and our funds have been seriously depleted by infertility costs.   Despite the federal adoption credits and programs out there, we know that we will need to raise quite a bit of money to help fund this adoption.  Which is where my talents are going to be put to use.  My husband and I have created a new website www.petillustrations.com, for which I have created several pet portrait samples to display.  I hope that everyone will check it out and consider commissioning me for a pet portrait to help our cause.  Additionally, I will be trying to market the site on various pet and adoption forums and groups, so if anyone has any information or ideas, they would be greatly appreciated.

“…we fed him a banana last night, and he fell asleep in the palm of my hand. We put him in his basket outside on the back porch for the night and this morning, he was still curled up sleeping in there around 7:30am…”

As I looked at the images and read about him, I kept thinking how adorable he was. So small and vulnerable, but also brave and sweet. I wondered about his courage and what made him unique; before long I was thinking up a story about his life and how he came to be there.

Puppies are Biodegradable Artist Statement
I started working on pieces for this show to help raise awareness about the horrors that go on in Puppy Mills. In the beginning I knew bad things were happening, I’d heard rumors, but I wasn’t really prepared to see for myself. The research for this show was the most gruesome and difficult thing I’ve ever done for my art. There were many times when I had to force myself to keep going, and several of the images will haunt me forever. It has made such an impression on me that I feel it is important to share my newfound knowledge through my art.

I had several concepts for the pieces in this show, many of which didn’t make it to fruition. Below are some comments about each piece.

Many of the puppy mill puppy images that I found were emaciated and pathetic. With the “Puppy Skeletons” I wanted to take that a step further. The colors, looseness of the drawing, and background were intended to create an eerie atmosphere, almost like the subjects had just been excavated. It was important to me that people see the ultimate results of puppy mills.

“St. Bernard Rescue Dog” was originally created to promote hope, but the mood in the painting suggests otherwise. It was created with the idea in mind that there is already a lot being done to help the cause, but more help is needed. There is only so much that a St. Bernard with a keg full of medical supplies can do.

This last piece was the most challenging to pull off. “Scenic Puppy Mill” depicts this Utopian place where puppies are raised and loved before being adopted out. It’s only once you notice something isn’t quite right with the image, that you really see the full picture. This piece depicts the face that puppy mills put on to the public, when in reality only horrors lie within.

Oak Leaf Artist Guild Update: I have the layout and overall design of the website figured out, in most part; I’m just waiting for the domain to be transfered to get started.

In the designs I showed the guild for the website I had a place holder for a logo or image to be used. They liked my place holder enough to ask me to finish it up and make into the new logo for the guild. I think that’s great because I really want to do what I can to help the guild; but I can’t say I’m not worried that some of the members of the guild might take this the wrong way or feel I’m overstepping my bounds. I’m really trying to keep as many people involved in the process as possible to prevent that from happening though. And of course, I’ll keep this blog updated to my progress.

I really appreciated his comments; they were straight forward, to the point, and helpful. It’s been a long time since someone has taken the time and effort to be honest and open with me in regards to my work. Oh how I’ve missed it! A good critique is hard to find, and worth it’s weight in gold to an artist open to it.

With the hustle and bustle of Christmas I’m going to be working on presents until the last possible minute. It doesn’t matter how early I start shopping, I always end up rushing around at the last minute.

In January I’m volunteering my time and efforts to decorate a centerpiece (see below) for a charity hosted at the Boone Center of St. Charles County for a Mardi Gras dinner gala. There will be a raffle and winner chosen at the end of the night and if I win I’ll get a half page article in Street Scape Magazine. There will be lot of stiff competition, so I need to come up with something that will really stand out! Unfortunately the display hand appears to be solid and a little frail, but maybe inspiration will hit me during the holidays. If anyone has any ideas please let me know!

I found a way to make great looking prints of my smaller works and had some 5×7 and 8×10 prints ready for the show last Sunday. I’m thinking about opening a web store to sell some of them, but I’d really like to get my process nailed down for the larger pieces first. I’ll keep you posted.

I should be hearing from Art St. Louis as early as next week to see if I was accepted into the XXIII Show, so keep your fingers crossed.

My to do list from last week.

• Find a place that prints professional business cards and pamplets relatively cheap. They should arrive tomorrow!
  
• Finish creating a promotional pamphlet. Already at the gallery for prospective buyers!
  
• Go to the hardware store and get wood for cradles and possibly framing.
• Build cradles onto the mixed media pieces and prepare them for hanging. I just need to finish painting the cradles!
  
• Purchase more mat board, hangers, and frames from the craft store. Done
  
• Find someone to make prints of some of the larger paintings. Some for me and some to sell.
• Mat and Hang a few more drawings.
• Finish some of the dozen pieces I’ve started but never finished.

I’ve contacted someone about making prints, but I’m going to look into some ways to cut down the cost before I go through with it. It’s no wonder original work costs so much, it has to to keep up with the cost of making prints.