Two paintings accepted by Art.Com

Two of my paintings - "Eye of the Beholder" and "The Observer" have been accepted by Art.Com for print production.

About Art.Com: "Our company was founded 11 years ago on the principle that people
should be surrounded by art they love. Since then, we've been building on the idea that art buyers deserve a way to discover art from around the world - from the well-known masters and from emerging artists, too. Our vision is to democratize the world of art, and we have been expanding Art.com, Inc. to reach toward this vision. You - and all Original Art & Photography artists - are an important part of this expansion."

Click here to view my gallery on Art.Com, order prints and choose framing options for these two works of art.

Pet Portraits

My canvas is on the way I've just heard, and I cannot WAIT to see this digital painting in my hands! I'm already dreaming of picking a really nice frame for it. I forgot in my post the other day to share the original photo. As you can see, Max has a stick between his paws and part in his mouth. I didn't want that in the portrait, so when I airbrush painted him I left those options out and gave him that more regal "portrait" look.
I also took advice from several of you and added something on my site about doing custom pet portraits like this. :) I love painting pets, and I really love the owner's reaction when they see the finished painting of their "babies". :) Perhaps after sharing Max's portrait, I'll get some commission work for pets!

Technorati tags: pet portrait, pet painting, dog portrait, German Shepherd, animal art, dog, puppy

Anti-Valentine's Day?

So go figure....after I've finally uploaded all of the art for the products with "The Observer" painting (featuring my German Shepherd Max as the model), I am logged into CafePress to check my account. I always read the little notices they have when I'm logged in, and after designing what *I feel* is a really cute Valentine's image featuring Hoppy the red-eyed tree frog, I discover Cafepress is hosting an "anti-valentines" theme contest! ARGH! Granted, I am NOT a huge fan of Valentine's Day, but I do believe in romance and do think "true love" can come for people. And I really, truly was trying to be positive here and focus on something sweet and romantic, as well as cute.

Oh well, so I can't enter that contest. Bummer. But at least I have a cute Hoppy design to share with those who are not anti-Valentine's this year.

Technorati tags: CafePress, CafePress.Com, Valentines, Valentine's Day, tree frog, German Shepherd, Puppy, dog

German Shepherd Puppy

Okay, I know it's not the ever-so-popular Hoppy the tree frog, but I just HAD TO do a painting featuring my newest model, Max. He's available as limited edition, signed/numbered matted prints here, and available on certain products in my Cafepress store here. Hope you like him!

Doing this painting makes me want to get back into pet portraits. Not that I ever "got out of it", but I just didn't find that many interested parties. The original single edition on canvas digital airbrush painting of Max is going to be framed in gold and hung in my living room. I wondered about taking it to the art gallery I'm a member of and putting up a sign/note about pet portraits though, using this one as a sample??? What you are seeing above is the ACEO art trading card image - the real "portrait" does not have the border or wording. It's printed in matte finish on high quality canvas and sealed, then will be framed in gold.

Hoppy the Red Eyed Tree Frog THANK YOU Cards

Okay, you guys have asked for it and it's here! The Hoppy "thank you" cards and other gifts are ready! Also, I've prepared the same image with a blank area to write your own words should you desire! Go here to see all the cards and products.

Hoppy takes a holiday break to play with her new puppy!

After 29 years, I've finally gotten what I really wanted for Christmas. The urge to own a German Shepherd came when I was 13. At the time, I was walking many of the neighborhood dogs where I lived, and obedience training them on our daily walks. One of those was a male German Shepherd, and he was by far my favorite breed I worked with. Ever since, I've said every year that I wanted one.

Finally, Santa brought me one! Here are a couple of first photos of Max.
His official name will probably be "Max A Million von Silajai". But we call him Max. He will be 10 weeks old this weekend and so far, is just an AWESOME puppy! He looks like he has a lot of black now, but so did his mother and she turned black/tan saddleback as she got older. Here's some photos of his mother (Princess), his father (Lars - who DOES have a lot of black) and his Grandfather (Gismo, son of a world champion).
So I've had a pretty busy holiday week and expect to be fairly busy with training him over the next year.

This means I will probably decrease the amount of work I have been putting out in the Hoppy line. I've been attempting and have succeeded at creating 3-4 new Hoppy paintings each week. However, I'm going to decrease my goal to 1-2 per week in order to give proper attention to the training of my new family member. He will be trained in obedience (of course), in basic protection, and I'm also looking to work with him on agility training. I do not plan to show him, but if he does well in the agility training, I might consider some of those events.

I will be online a lot less, so if you email me, please have patience in waiting for a response. I will still answer all emails quickly, but I am only checking email about once per day now.

Hope everyone had a great Christmas, and next week, I'll be getting back to work on the next Hoppy image. :)

For the coffee addicts like me!

Here's the next Hoppy design! Doesn't she just look adorable in her pink rollers? LOL! Perfect for caffeine addicts everywhere!

Pick up the ACEO art trading card print on Ebay this week, and get your "Before Coffee" merchandise here in the Hoppy store.