| Hello everyone,
I'd like to share a little, but somewhat lengthy, story with you. In March of 2011, I was approached by Amanda Kloski vet-tech and foster parent to Wall-E, the now-famous pup who survived euthanasia twice. She wanted to know if I would paint a portrait of him to help raise funds to build a new shelter that they are in desperate need of - part of the reason he was scheduled for euthanasia. After hearing the entire story, I thought, how could I say no? I was humbled by their request. It was also odd that just several days earlier I had read Wall-E's story, and like most stories involving our four-legged friends, it moved me in a profound way. If you are unfamiliar with Wall E-'s miraculous "tail" of survival, please see his story located here or his appearance on ABC's Good Morning America located here. |
I am sharing all of this with you because my portrait of Wall-E is now complete. I set aside close to three weeks of studio time to work exclusively on this piece and I am extremely proud of the finished work. I cannot begin to tell you how difficult it was to keep this project under wraps for nearly two months and I am very excited to now share the piece with you. In capturing Wall-E's personality I decided to portray him in his forever home, relaxing on his favorite chair with a pillow that conveys his big heart and love for life. Next to him is a bouquet, again representing a "beautiful life", with a shamrock arranged above his head to symbolize his good luck as well as the real shamrock-like image on his behind (see his appearance on Good Morning America to see what I mean!). ~Your friend through art and for the animals, p.s. Please remember to use the Like and Tweet buttons on this page located here and help us spread the word about Wall-E's miraculous "tail" of survival.
CLICK HERE TO LEARN HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT WALL-E'S AND HIS FOUR LEGGED FRIENDS |
It is with a heavy heart that I say good-bye to Elizabeth Taylor. She had a big heart and I feel honored to have worked with her – I will always remember her for that gift. As with many of my works, I try and do something good with them for charity. And, so was the case with the commission I did for her of her beloved canine companion, “Sugar”. Upon completing the painting, Elizabeth and I agreed to create a series of limited editions and have her and I sign them, donating a percentage of sales to Whispering Hope Ranch, an organization for special needs kids and animals. This camp is a wonderful place where kids and animals share in a healing and loving experience. May Elizabeth and Sugar be together again – our thoughts are with both of you.
I am sure that by now, if you know me, you know Rufus - that handsome lil’ character shown above and also the inspiration for my painting and philanthropic career. Well now he is at the center [literally] of a new program I am announcing today. My sweet Rufus' image, that I painted as an original, will be printed on a blank canvas, and then I will paint on/around (in art vocabulary that’s called embellish) the rest of the canvas in a theme related to each specific letter of the alphabet. Get it? Rufus' ABC's!
DIFFA is one of the country's largest supporters of direct care for people living with HIV/AIDS and preventive education for those at risk. Supporters of DIFFA come from all fields of fine design and the visual arts, including: architecture, fashion design, interior design, photography and consumer product design. DIFFA has granted over $38 million to hundreds of AIDS service organizations nationwide.
The Dining by Design in an over-the-top celebration of all things tabletop! This fundraising event brings together established talent, artists, and celebrated individuals to create three-dimensional dining installations that awe, inspire, and delight. Each dining space (either 11’x11’ or 11’x20’) has a sponsor and a design team charged with creating a dining space for 10 people that will be memorable, unique and creative.
This year in Atlanta, the sponsor Insidesign (www.myinsidesign.com)chose Kandrac & Kole Interior Designs, Inc. to transform their 11’x11’ empty space into a dining extravaganza. In 2 weeks time, this dynamic duo created a space that became one of the highlights of the event. According to co-owner Kelly Kole, “The inspiration for our invent started with a recent piece of art, named “Life is Ruff”, by Arizona artist Ron Burns. With the economy in a state of flux, the recent historic floods in Atlanta, and the challenge of the AIDS virus worldwide, we felt this theme was appropriate. Our interpretation however, was a positive one – filled with glitz, glamour and whimsy as we combined Ron’s art with artistic finishes, silk, velvet and bedazzled Milkbone dog bones!” The perimeters were established using (8) 8’, solid core doors that were faux finished a metallic purple, supporting panels of luxurious crรจme silk and wide plank hardwood floors. The space was then filled with six pieces of art from the Ron Burns Studio, velvet and silk cushions, red roses wrapped in pearl dog collars and lit by a black and white Italian crystal chandelier. Quite a transformation for a worthy cause!
