Schnauzer profile 8x10x1.5 inch Original Dog Art Painting by Dottie Dracos

I love this painting. Hey, I'm actually getting better -- I think! This painting was spontaneous, not a slavish copy of the photograph from which I painted it. I photoed the dog, whose name is Smoke, some months ago and finally got around to getting it painted. I've done a couple of paintings of Smoke before, but I think this is definitely my favorite. He's 8x10x1.5" acrylic on hardboard, $150. This painting has sold. http://www.dottiedracos.com/.

Cocker Spaniel Dog Art 8x10 Original Painting by Dottie Dracos

This painting -- finally -- is a composite of several photographs I've taken of a few cocker spaniels who come to visit me at Portland Saturday Market (I've become quite the popular one for dogs to visit. Honestly, I think they tell their parents that they want to come to visit me!) Anyway, I love this painting. My work is getting looser in one way and tighter in another. I like the direction I'm going -- for now, at least. There's one thing that bothers me a bit, though, that has nothing to do with my painting; rather, it's the base on which I'm painting, mdf wood. I love the texture of it and how transportable it is, but I have the feeling that it's sapping brightness from my paintings. Maybe it's just me and I need to work with brighter, warmer colors, but I get the feeling that I put the colors on brightly, and in an hour or two, they've lost a lot of their brilliance. The painting I'm doing today, an English bulldog portrait, I'm also using the wood, but this time I sealed it with a very fine coating of varnish between the pencil drawing and the initial color "laydown." (Is that a word????) We'll see if that makes a difference. Anyway, this painting, as usual, is for sale on my website. It's an 8x10x1.5 on wood, with painted wood sides, and it sells for $150.00. I also have clocks available, as usual.

German Shepherd Smiling Dog, Revised

This is a "redo" of a painting I did many months ago and was never really happy with. I am happy with this one, though. I won't say it's the best painting I've ever done, but I do feel that I'm learning so much more and much more quickly lately. I've finally gotten back into painting more than I was, and it's showing, I think. I can finally start to see beyond the photos I work from and put more of myself into a painting. It's a good thing. This painting is already sold.

Australian Shepherd Painting - Blue Merle

Well, I did get this painting finished today. I really, really enjoyed doing this one. It's again 8x10 acrylic paint on wood, with 1" black sides. It's for sale on my website for $150 plus shipping. www.dottiedracos.com

German Shorthaired Pointer painting

This is another painting I finished this past week. It's also 8x10x1.5 on wood, sides painted black. I think these are some of the most beautiful dogs to exist. And from having one of the best friends of my life be at least part GSP, I know what loving, intelligent dogs they are, too. This painting is available on my website, http://www.dottiedracos.com/, and sells for $150.00. Clocks are also available.

Australian Shepherd Painting - Tan

This is an Australian Shepherd that I just finished. I'm also working on a blue merle Australian shepherd that I should finish sometime today and will list just as soon as it's finished. This painting is an 8x10 with 1.5" black sides, acrylic painted on wood, and is available on my website for $150, plus shipping. Obviously, as usual, it's also available as a clock on my website, www.dottiedracos.com.

On another subject, does anyone read my blog??? If you do, please leave a comment just so I know someone is reading it. Sometimes I feel that I'm just writing a personal diary, one of those that no one else ever gets to read. But that's not the purpose of my blog. Its purpose is to share my artwork, try to make a living as a full-time artist, get feedback on my work, etc.

Not a Painting This Time - Just a little statement regarding music and art and snobbery

This entry has nothing to do with my paintings, just something that came to my mind that I just have to publish. It has to do with snobbery. While I've been working this morning, my husband has been playing his favorite radio program: KBOO, out of Portland, OR, every Monday at noon plays "Country Music Jamboree."

First of all, I consider myself to be quite sophisticated, knowledgeable, very well-educated, worldly (in a good sense), an over-all cool person -- and I love the music on KBOO's radio program, as well as blue grass, jazz, blues, New Orleans-style jazz, cajun, polka music, music from "musicals," traditional Greek, traditional French, etc., etc., and, of course, my very most favorite music, classical (no particularly favorite composers, just favorite compositions, including operas).

A couple of years ago I was having dinner with a group of fellow artists at a very high-end art show. Talk came around to music as one of our fellow artists had been playing some beautiful Hawaiian music cd's during the slow times of the show (by Ledward Kaapala if you're interested). We spoke of various classical composers for a few minutes, music which drives my art most days, by the way. I then mentioned the country music writer/singer Hank Williams, whose music I had only recently come to know, so I wanted to share one of my new "favorites" with others. Well, it was as if a pot of iced water had been poured over us all at the dinner table. Conversation pretty much came to a complete stop, and the after-dinner banter closed and we all left. I cannot help but think that my favorable mention of a country music legend is what stopped the conversation.

In my humble opinion, great music (and other forms of art as well) can come in many, many different forms, styles, levels of sophistication, etc. I found it so sad and disappointing that these "refined" people appeared to find themselves too superior to listen to, and even appreciate, music outside their customary comfort zone. I defy anyone to sit and listen and feel Hank Williams' song "I'm so Lonesome I could Cry" and not feel that this is a small masterpiece in every sense of that word. Okay, 'nuf said! My next entry will be back to my dog paintings.

Affenpinscher Portrait

This is an affenpinscher, which from research I did, is probably of German origin, and means something like "monkey face," and AKC says its face ought to be somewhat "monkey-like," or words similar to that. I don't see it myself. I think it's just a really pretty little dog with a very cute little bottom lip. Anyway, it's 8x10 on hardboard, with 1.5" black inset sides added for hanging. It sells for $150 and is available on my website.

A really, really special beagle painting

I loooove this painting! Sometimes paintings just don't seem to work for me. This one was an exception; the paint just jumped from the brush to the canvas! It's 24x36" acrylic on canvas, 1"-deep black lath-framed, and sells for $500.00, plus shipping. I've also attached a copy of one of my clocks that I make from prints of my paintings. All my clocks are $20 each, plus shipping. All my items are for sale on my website, http://www.dottiedracos.com/.

Rottweiler and Tennis Ball

This is a painting I recently finished and really enjoyed. It's not for sale except as a clock because I painted it simply on heavy paper. It was a difficult painting for me, but I think I learned a great deal by doing it. Hope you enjoy it.

Boston Terrier

I love this one! I just finished it last night. It's for sale, so here are the details on it. It's 24x30x3/4" acrylic on canvas, with the image extending around the sides, so a frame is not necessary if you don't want one. It's $400.00 plus $12.00 shipping.

This is "Cat" the cat

Here's a precious cat painting I just finished for a customer, who's giving it to her friend who is mourning the recent loss of "Cat" the cat. She was quite old and very much loved from what I hear. Cat is already SOLD, but prints (or a clock) are available from my website, www.dottiedracos.com. It was a pleasure to be given the honor to paint this memorial painting.

A Mighty Bright Corgi Portrait

Here's one of the brightest paintings I've done of a Corgi named Pun'kin. She was a commission so is already sold. She's 9x12" acrylic on canvas, and she's available as a print or as a clock on my website, www.dottiedracos.com.

Yellow Lab Puppy

Here's my latest painting I've done. It's been a while since I've been able to paint due to the ill health of a family member, but now I'm back at it again!

This little yellow lab is a brave, exciting new direction for me: larger canvases. He's acrylic on 24x30" canvas and sells for $400.00. He can be seen "in dog" at Club K-9, 7427 N Curtis Ave., Portland, Oregon , 97217, Phone: 503-289-7472.

Prints are also available at my website, www.dottiedracos.com or www.wildwildthings.com.

A recently completed commission - Bowzer

Here's Bowzer, a beautiful lab. He was painted on for me a rather large canvas, 24x30". He was a wonderful model, I think. He's already sold, but he's available as a clock on my website, www.dottiedracos.com.

For the next few weeks, in addition to completing more commissioned paintings, I'll be doing a separate group of what I hope are really fun paintings for a little showing at a great coffee shop here in Beaverton, OR, the Iron Mutt. It should be fun; they'll all be for sale. And some of the proceeds from the sales go to area animal shelters, such as Bonnie Hayes, where we adopted our most recent family member, our pomeranian, Harry P. Barker, Harry for short.