A picture is worth a thousand words. Oh, how true it is.
“The Art of Conversation” is a playful blend of art and language. In her custom pet portraits, Sisters artist Jennifer Brewer captures nuggets of conversation and silly banter between master and pet. Despite the one-sided dialogue, the companionship is true.
During the recent Doggy Days event at Sisters Unique, Jennifer worked her magic with a handful of pencils and a sketchpad. Using customers’ pet photos as inspiration, she captured furry faces and button noses on paper. But the real customization came with words. After interviewing each pet owner, she scribbled bits of dialogue into the portrait – a jumble of nicknames, expressions and commands that a person says to their animal on a typical day.
“We say things to our pets that contradict ourselves, we spoil them, and we have nicknames for them that are downright hilarious,” Jennifer explains. “It’s a celebration of the humorous contradictions that are in every animal lover’s vocabulary. Like ‘give kisses’ and then in the next breath ‘no licks!’”
“Sometimes it becomes so second nature, we forget what we’re even saying,” she says. “It’s sort of like rediscovering a treasure that’s been in front of you the whole time.”
Like a true artist, Jennifer has her muse. His name is Oliver Twist, a sassy Malti-shih-poo with a wispy white coat and the attitude of a dog twice his size. He tagged along for the in-store event and quickly became the star of the show.
“Oliver loved the attention. As long as he remained the ‘alpha dog,’ she teased. ”I would hate if he ever found out how small he actually is. Shh!”
