Pet Portraits.

Damon My old Dog.

Yesterday I had one of those days that leave me always feeling the same. Tired and with mixed feelings. 

I thought the day was going very well until I discovered that the mount I had cut the day before was all the wrong size for the portrait I was going to mount up.  So I thought I would at least get it off the printer, only to discover that I had run out of ink. 

So a visit to two places that always leave me in a turmoil of emotions. The art store and the computer store. Both of those places set my Taoist thinking into turmoil and the emotion of desire takes over. I see pastels and paints of all those beautiful colours and find it very difficult not to purchase them. 

I am like every artists friend I know, I have many things I have just had to have and have never used since. My most expensive being four boxes of special mixable markers I have yet to find a use for. 

Then of course the computer store where there are all those gadgets. 

Yesterday taoism won the day and I only purchased what I really needed.

I did have a nice conversation with a fellow artist and we laughed together about som of the funny things that happen with commissions, which every time I promise not to do again. 

Let me share one such, I will tell you in the form of the conversations that took place. 

Woman: Hello. You’re the one who draws animals, yes?

Me: Found me! So, what do you–?

Woman: Oh, good! Because I have something I want you to do for me.

She digs through her overfull handbag and hands me a printed photo of a taxidermy tree kangaroo. Ne

Me: Oh? Is this what you–?

Woman: Yes, yes. I went to the Museum  and I love that animal. I was wanting to know if you could maybe go out of the way of what you regularly do?

I know it’s not a pet, but it’s still an animal…”

As odd as it sounds, hearing it’s a photo from a trip made it make a little more sense. We discuss pricing and what she wants. She’s adamant that the photo is what she wants, so I work from that, but I keep her updated throughout just to make sure I’m on the right track. When I am finished, I get in touch and let her see the finished artwork.

Woman: “Oh.”

Me: “Something wrong?”

Woman: “Oh. No. Except…”

A long pause.

Woman: “It’s wrong. The wrong colour.”

Me: “Excuse me?”

Woman: “There’s another colour of tree kangaroo. I wanted the other colour.”

Me: “You gave me a photo to work from. You said that’s what you wanted.”

Woman: “Yes, well, that was the pose I wanted.”

Me: “You’ve been approving it every stage of the way.”

Woman: “But this is the wrong colour of tree kangaroo.”

Me: “Why didn’t you tell me you wanted a different colour?”

Woman: *sighing heavily* I figured it was obvious.”

Me: “I should have just… known?”

Woman: “You’re the artist. I thought you knew those things.”

We try our best but no matter how hard we try we do not always get it right. I have been working on a portrait as a birthday present that will be given tonight. I so hope my telepathy has been in tune and I have got it right!

Have a wonderful day.