The souls of pets are so bright that only brushstrokes can fairly capture them. MarySue Krueger proves this. Her subjects, whether they are bounding headlong into a crystal blue lake, sticking their heads out of car windows so their ears flap straight back, or just having a little snooze in the afternoon sun, all appear to radiate light. The Eden Prairie watercolorist paints pets, and she is available to immortalize your best friend whether they bark, meow or chirp.
“I was born with the art bug,” said MarySue. “I don’t remember a time when I didn’t love drawing, and later on painting. Some of my earliest drawings were copied from Lady and the Tramp.
“I’ve never had any formal education in art. Outside of attending regular workshops held by the Minnesota Watercolor Society, of which I’m a lifetime member, I’m pretty much self-taught. I only began sharing my work 20 years ago when I painted my first ‘HollyDog’ – a portrait of my family’s dog, which I put on our Christmas cards. The people on our Christmas card list told me they were touched by my painting of Sunny, our yellow Lab. I’m afraid that many of them haven’t seen my family since!
“I quickly discovered that watercolor is the perfect medium for painting dogs. Like dogs, watercolor is spontaneous. You have to be very open to what the paint and the water might decide to do on their own. With other mediums you have extreme flexibility fixing mistakes, but with watercolor you either have to make mistakes work or throw the whole painting away and start over. But usually, things work out.
“I have always loved dogs. They are the best people. Dogs are loyal, they’re fun to be around, and they’re warm to snuggle up with. Dogs love paying attention to you, and they love getting it back just as much. I truly believe that people can form closer connections with dogs than with any other animal, and I try to capture that whenever I paint a dog with their master.
“I am especially enamored with dogs’ eyebrows. If you look closely at any dog, and really study the ridges just above their eyes, you can tell exactly what they are thinking. Calmness, apprehension, excitement – the eyebrows convey every mood, which is why it’s so important for me to paint them just right.
“Don’t take my love for dogs as a condemnation of cats! They just have different spirits; whereas dogs have masters, cats have people. They’re not going to thank you as much for your presence, but that doesn’t mean they’re standoffish. They’re … self-contained. And interestingly, from an artist’s perspective at least, softer. Even the softest-coated dog isn’t as soft as a smoothest-coated cat, which lets me play a lot more with the way light shines through cats’ fur.
“I typically work from photographs. I always ask my client for the photo which best represents their pet, but I do ask for a number of shots so I can study their dog or cat in different lighting and poses. I also ask them to tell me more about their pet’s personality – whether they’re a couch potato or an athlete, happy-go-lucky or reserved. The more details I can learn about an animal’s personality, the more I can convey it in a painting. That’s how I’m able to capture an animal’s spirit better than photography ever could.
“Painting pets in my hometown of Eden Prairie gives me the chance to actually meet my subjects and learn more about them in person. It also lets me enjoy my favorite part of what I do, which is seeing my client’s reaction when I reveal their painting!”
To see more of MarySue’s work and learn how to commission a beautiful watercolor of your best friend, please call (612) 716-4829 or visit marysuekrueger.com.