Dog PortraitsBy Gary Kitchen

IntroductionJackson, our Dogs Trust rescuedGerman Shepherd Dog.

Found abandoned in a nearby city centre,undernourished, half his adult weight, no IDchip, no collar, he was approximately 18months old when the dog warden took him tothe Dogs Trust for rehoming, fully housetrained, obedient, good with children and oth-er dogs, a more gentle animal you could notwish to meet, he came home with us andsettled right in (he shouldn't be on that setteein the photo) and his rehoming is the inspira-tion for these dog drawings.

Any drawing commissioned via the contactdetails at the end of this booklet will be donefree of charge from myself, all Jackson and Irequest is that you make a donation to DogsTrust, (we suggest 20 but its up to you), insupport of their tireless work to find newhomes for thousands of stray and abandoneddogs every year, Jackson still has anxieties ofhis own two years after he came to us and theDogs Trust offer their free support to us forthe rest of his life .

Gary Kitchen

2012 Gary Kitchen . The artist retains sole copyright to his artwork and this publication.

Please do not copy or publish any of the original artwork without prior permission other than for promoting this publicationvia social media which you may freely do with my absolute pleasure and lasting gratitude.

A person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours. Marley taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy,about seizing the moment and following your heart. He taught me to appreciate the simple things-a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, anap in a shaft of winter sunlight. And as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity. Mostly, he taught meabout friendship and selflessness and, above all else, unwavering loyalty.JohnGrogan,MarleyandMe:LifeandLoveWiththeWorld'sWorstDog

Dogs feel very strongly that they should always go with you in the car, in case the need should arise for them to bark violently at nothingright in your ear.DaveBarry

A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.JoshBillings

Dogs are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to beback in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring--it was peace.MilanKundera

Meow means woof in cat.GeorgeCarlin

If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.WillRogers

If a dog will not come to you after having looked you in the face, you should go home and examine your conscience.WoodrowWilson

Dogs have given us their absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve usin return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made. RogerCaras

"Sully", Jack Russell Terrier (left)

"Tilly", Jack Russell Terrier (right)

Both from a private commission, pencil onheavy cartridge paperA3 sizing (16" x 11")

"Jackson" our German Shepherd DogPencil drawing on A3 cartridge paper, original sold at a Dogs Trust auction

He came to us as an abandoned 18 month old, skin and bones at 28kg, a more gentle dog you could not wish to meet to this day I do notunderstand the mentality of a person who would raise him, fully train him, and then just abandon his trust and leave him far from home so thateven two years later he still has anxieties about being restrained or walked with a single male.

He is now a healthy 40kg, loves life, loves walks, loves tennis balls, loves chewing bones (the bigger the better), has his own chair in the houseto sleep on (even I don't have my own chair), and poses for portraits whenever I ask him to.

"Jake" our Golden Retriever 1997 - 2011Pencil on cartridge paper, A3 sizing

As good a dog as Jackson is he follows in the pawsteps of Jake and there will only ever be one Jake.Its true that Jake once stood in our kitchen and just watched as a burglar came in and stole my wallet and phone, didn't even bark because hedidn't know that he was supposed to, Jake was a gentle soul and we're all privileged to have shared his thirteen years with him.

"A watchdog is a dog kept to guard your home, usually by sleeping where a burglar would awaken the household by falling over him." Anonymous

"Frankie" the Pug, a commission.Pencil on cartridge paper, A3 sizing

HOW TO COMMISSION A DOG PORTRAIT

THE COST - Its very simple, I don't charge you. I'll do the portrait and post it to you (there may be a small postage charge if you liveoutside of the UK), if you like it all I ask is that you make a donation to the UK based charity Dogs Trust (see link at the bottom ofthis page), I don't need to know how much, I'm not going to tell you how much, I'll never find out how much or even if you did, butthat's all I ask, send them some money via their web site, or buy something off their web site, or call in and buy something in one oftheir shops, or go to one of their UK and Ireland shelters and donate there, that's all that Jackson and I ask of you.

WHY DON'T YOU CHARGE ? It makes me feel good, and a little smug, and it makes Jackson smile, and maybe somewhere anotherdog might just be treated nicely and find a good home.

SO WHAT DO YOU NEED ? I need photos of your dog, decent quality ones preferred, especially close up shots of his/her face andhead, tell me whether you just want a head portrait or the whole dog, if you want the whole thing then I'd appreciate a photo of thewhole thing, and if we're both really, really lucky then maybe your canine friend will actually pose properly like Sully did back onpage 4, we got really lucky there because out of maybe 20 photos THAT was the pose that won it, if you can do as good as that thenwe'll get a good portrait I promise.

WHAT SIZE ? I draw on A3 cartridge paper, that's approx 16" x 11" so that you can easily find a ready made frame to fit, its a stand-ard size for picture framing, if you want it smaller then just let me know.

WHAT MEDIUM ? My dog portraits are done in coloured pencil simply because its easy to get lots of fine detail with a sharp pencil,yes I paint landscapes in acrylic but they often turn out to be abstract so if you want a painting of your dog then be prepared for it tolook a bit abstract, maybe like Picasso has done it.

email your photos and ideas & requests to sales@garykitchen.co.uk

Thank you from Jackson and myself.

www.dogstrust.org.uk www.garykitchen.co.uk