I am a dog person and an art person, but I don't have any dog art on our walls. Well, that's going to change one day soon because I plan to commission the very talented artist
Clair Hartmann to paint my three Jack Russell terriers (or at least, I told my husband that this is a gift I'd like to receive). Clair is my #1 pick for dog portraits because she is very skilled from a technical perspective, and more importantly, she is brilliant at depicting the unique personality of each pooch. She paints quite a few JRTs and every depiction of the breed shows an inherent habit, expression, or mannerism that I know and love. After seeing her oeuvre, I'm confident that Ms. Hartmann is capable of fully capturing the spirit of my crazy trio of terriers.
Clair is also my artist of choice because I want to support her and her generous efforts to contribute to dog rescue. As you'll see below Clair donates proceeds from the sales of many of her pieces to various rescue groups. She also
recently adopted a Jack/Rat terrier mix and I am forever grateful for those who take in shelter dogs.
My favorite pieces are her portraits that show the dog wearing a funny hat. This is how I want my girls painted...it'll be fun to decide what sort of hat each should don. I want Jazzy to wear a
vintage Las Vegas showgirl headpiece. Maybe a jeweled crown and ermine robe on Wendy? Perhaps a geisha wig and a kimono on Miley?
Until I have three of my own to show you, here are a few of Clair's greatest hits...
And here are a few beautiful paintings of canines without hats...
