“The portraits of Luke and Mr. Kitty Kat are just beyond all expectations. Your work is just inspiring, truly. All of your paintings literally appear alive and breathing on the canvas. You capture the image and create an intimacy and warmth that results in a simply breathtaking final piece. You somehow are able to convey the “soul” of the animal. Amazing. Simply amazing.” – P.B. of Indiana

I’m sincerely humbled when I receve such an amazing compliment from a customer. Sweet words like this often brings me to tears. Luke is my client’s third pet portraits. I finished Mr. Kitty Kat in January and her Frisky was one of the first pet portraits I’ve ever done. Cheers to clients who come back for many more commissions! 

Luke is a darling rescue of nearly 16 years and my client wanted a portrait of him as a tribute to his beautiful life. She really loves her animals. She lives for them and, I believe, she has a very special connection with them.

Once I started on this portrait, I could sense that Luke has probably been a very strong character in my client’s life. He came across to me as the constant and the stable rock and I wanted to highlight that in his background color. I think the blend of the red and orange hues fits his energy really well, and the colors work well without competing with his fur. I also think this vibrant background measures up really well against the other pet portraits I’ve done for her. Here’s another look at Mr. Kitty Kat…

and Frisky, the Kitty.

All three of these portraits are very bold. You may recall that Frisky’s background color was chosen after his favorite blanket which is turquoise/blue-ish blanket, but for the other portraits she let me surprise her. I can totally picture Frisky and Mr. Kitty Kat on either side of Luke. Can’t you? 

Luke’s portrait measures 11×14 inches and is on a 1.5 inches deep gallery wrapped canvas. The background color spreads onto all sides of the painting. 

See more photos of Luke in the gallery, and if you are interested in having your pet painted or giving one as a gift, check out this page: www.StudioEriksdotter.com/pet and feel free to email me with any questions.