I got back from a trip to visit my sister in Ashland, Oregon. We had such a great visit. She is a designer and an artist like me and is a source of great inspiration. She, like me, is also a dog lover. Kathy, my sister, has a cocker spaniel named Freckles and I have an English Pointer that I adopted 6 years ago named Sam. Our pets are constantly underfoot and looking for love. When I started the painting that I posted above I had just been to a dog park with Sam. We don't often get out to the park so it was fun to see all of the people and their canine companions interacting. This piece reminds me a little of the flower gardens in Loring Park which is located in Minneapolis. I hadn't originally intended to add any flowers but I had some inspiration after my sister turned me on to a textile designer who paints these amazingly brilliant florals- Kim Parker. I had forgotten how uplifting flowers can be. I may need to paint more of them considering it is officially winter in Minnesota...Yuck!
