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Animals
Animals have a wonderful way of revealing their personalities without saying a word. I’m drawn to the expressions, gestures, and small moments that make each one an individual—the eager look of a dog ready to play, the quiet patience of a horse, the intensity of a cat’s gaze, or the connection between two animals sharing the same space.
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Painting and drawing animals also gives me the chance to explore texture, movement, pattern, and character in very different ways. Whether I’m working in watercolor, oil, or graphite and ink, I want the animal to feel like more than a subject. I want you to sense the personality that caught my attention in the first place.
01
Horse in Winter.jpg
The horse's warm color against the snow was enough to make me stop. I kept the winter background very open so the lowered head, shaggy mane, and quiet expression could carry the watercolor.
01 / 01
Horse in Winter.jpg
The horse's warm color against the snow was enough to make me stop. I kept the winter background very open so the lowered head, shaggy mane, and quiet expression could carry the watercolor.
01
Horse in Winter.jpg
The horse's warm color against the snow was enough to make me stop. I kept the winter background very open so the lowered head, shaggy mane, and quiet expression could carry the watercolor.
01
Birds of a Feather
The paper doilies gave the watercolor a texture I couldn't get from a smooth sheet. I liked how that surface breaks through the birds' blue and rust feathers and makes the pair feel almost built from pattern.
02
Lizard
This lizard almost disappears into the foliage, and that was the fun of it. The paper-doily texture adds another layer of pattern, so leaves, skin, and background keep trading places.
03
Smiling Dog
This one is all about the expression. The dog looks completely content beside the ball, and I kept the surrounding watercolor loose so that easy, sunny feeling would stay at the center.
04
Reclining Cat
The eyes are impossible to ignore, especially against all the stripes and patterns in the fur and blanket. I liked letting the watercolor move freely around the cat while keeping that gaze sharp.
05
Tennis Anyone?
The dog in front seems to be making the invitation personally, tennis ball and all. I liked the distance between the two dogs and the warm clay court, which gives the watercolor a wonderfully playful stage.
06
Beagles
What caught my eye was the way these two beagles sit so differently yet seem completely connected. Their direct looks, against the loose folds of red and pink fabric, give the watercolor a lot of personality.
07
Waiting in Prospect Park
I was taken by how patient this dog looked, sitting alone while the leash draws a quiet diagonal through the scene. The warm light on the ground makes the waiting feel almost ceremonial.
08
Two Wolves
I was interested in how much can happen in such a tight crop. The two wolves press into the frame, and the small gesture of one licking the other softens all that dense fur and watchful eye contact.
09
Hello!
The sheer enthusiasm in this moment was irresistible—the dogs seem to come right toward you, one almost laughing. The overlapping bodies and loose watercolor washes keep all that energy moving.
10
Just Thinking
I couldn't resist the expression here. With the chin flat on the ground and those eyes looking up, the dog seems to have an entire thought process going on, so I kept the background very spare.
11
Let's Play
This dog has such an open, ready-for-anything expression that I wanted the drawing to stay light. The graphite and ink describe all that soft fur without weighing the portrait down.
12
Gazing Afar
The eyes set the direction of the whole portrait. Instead of looking at us, the dog is fixed on something beyond the frame, and I liked letting the detailed fur support that alert expression.
13
Bryant Park
The carousel horse gave me an excuse to enjoy color and ornament without restraint. Turquoise, gold, painted flowers, and the surrounding carousel details all compete happily for attention.
14
Carousel Horses
I wanted to get close enough that the carousel became fragments of color and motion. The dark horse, bright saddle, poles, and glimpses of other horses overlap in a way that feels more alive than a full view.
15
Bernini
With Bernini, the challenge was all that fur. I liked building the face through hundreds of small marks while keeping the eyes clear enough to hold the portrait together.
16
Horse at Central Park
The narrow format made me look at the carriage horse differently. Instead of a full portrait, the harness, wheel, and fragments of the animal become a pattern of dark shapes against the cool blue-green background.
01 / 16
Birds of a Feather
The paper doilies gave the watercolor a texture I couldn't get from a smooth sheet. I liked how that surface breaks through the birds' blue and rust feathers and makes the pair feel almost built from pattern.
01
Birds of a Feather
The paper doilies gave the watercolor a texture I couldn't get from a smooth sheet. I liked how that surface breaks through the birds' blue and rust feathers and makes the pair feel almost built from pattern.
02
Lizard
This lizard almost disappears into the foliage, and that was the fun of it. The paper-doily texture adds another layer of pattern, so leaves, skin, and background keep trading places.
03
Smiling Dog
This one is all about the expression. The dog looks completely content beside the ball, and I kept the surrounding watercolor loose so that easy, sunny feeling would stay at the center.
04
Reclining Cat
The eyes are impossible to ignore, especially against all the stripes and patterns in the fur and blanket. I liked letting the watercolor move freely around the cat while keeping that gaze sharp.
05
Tennis Anyone?
The dog in front seems to be making the invitation personally, tennis ball and all. I liked the distance between the two dogs and the warm clay court, which gives the watercolor a wonderfully playful stage.
06
Beagles
What caught my eye was the way these two beagles sit so differently yet seem completely connected. Their direct looks, against the loose folds of red and pink fabric, give the watercolor a lot of personality.
07
Waiting in Prospect Park
I was taken by how patient this dog looked, sitting alone while the leash draws a quiet diagonal through the scene. The warm light on the ground makes the waiting feel almost ceremonial.
08
Two Wolves
I was interested in how much can happen in such a tight crop. The two wolves press into the frame, and the small gesture of one licking the other softens all that dense fur and watchful eye contact.
09
Hello!
The sheer enthusiasm in this moment was irresistible—the dogs seem to come right toward you, one almost laughing. The overlapping bodies and loose watercolor washes keep all that energy moving.
10
Just Thinking
I couldn't resist the expression here. With the chin flat on the ground and those eyes looking up, the dog seems to have an entire thought process going on, so I kept the background very spare.
11
Let's Play
This dog has such an open, ready-for-anything expression that I wanted the drawing to stay light. The graphite and ink describe all that soft fur without weighing the portrait down.
12
Gazing Afar
The eyes set the direction of the whole portrait. Instead of looking at us, the dog is fixed on something beyond the frame, and I liked letting the detailed fur support that alert expression.
13
Bryant Park
The carousel horse gave me an excuse to enjoy color and ornament without restraint. Turquoise, gold, painted flowers, and the surrounding carousel details all compete happily for attention.
14
Carousel Horses
I wanted to get close enough that the carousel became fragments of color and motion. The dark horse, bright saddle, poles, and glimpses of other horses overlap in a way that feels more alive than a full view.
15
Bernini
With Bernini, the challenge was all that fur. I liked building the face through hundreds of small marks while keeping the eyes clear enough to hold the portrait together.
16
Horse at Central Park
The narrow format made me look at the carriage horse differently. Instead of a full portrait, the harness, wheel, and fragments of the animal become a pattern of dark shapes against the cool blue-green background.
- Watercolor on paper doilies showing two blue-and-rust birds perched side by side.
- Watercolor on paper doilies of a lizard camouflaged among fern leaves.
- Watercolor of a smiling dog lying on warm-toned ground beside a ball.
- Watercolor of a reclining tabby cat on an orange-and-white patterned blanket, looking toward the viewer.
- Watercolor of two dogs on a clay tennis court, with the front dog holding a tennis ball.
- Watercolor of two beagles sitting close together on red, pink, and gray fabric.
- Oil painting of a dog sitting and waiting in Prospect Park with a leash extending across the scene.
- Close-up watercolor of two wolves with overlapping faces, one licking the other.
- Watercolor of two lively dogs facing the viewer, one with its mouth open.
- Watercolor of a dog lying down with its chin on the ground and looking up with expressive eyes.
- Graphite and ink portrait of a fluffy light-colored dog with an open, playful expression.
- Graphite and ink portrait of a dog looking upward and away from the viewer.
- Oil painting of a brightly decorated turquoise and gold carousel horse in Bryant Park.
- Oil painting of a close-up carousel horse with a blue-and-red saddle and other carousel horses behind it.
- Graphite and ink portrait of a shaggy dog named Bernini looking toward the viewer.
- Long horizontal oil painting showing a close crop of a carriage horse, harness, and wheel.
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