It makes me sad sometimes that so many of the paintings of pets that I do are of animals that have passed away.
Last year I painted this for a friend who commissioned it as a gift for her sister, whose dog Kramer had recently died:
I absolutely love this painting, but it is definitely melancholy. The hedgehog you see in the painting was one of Kramer's favorite toys, all alone now since Kramer is no longer around to play with it.
My own dog Kramer is going to be 15 in May and though he is doing fairly well, age is slowly taking it's toll. I try not to think about his eventual passing, but it's hard not to sometimes, especially when I see him stumble or get confused or not be able to jump on the bed. On the other hand, when he runs around like a crazy puppy looking for his next meal, I feel some reassurance that he's going to be around for awhile longer. At any rate, I am lucky to have found him.
