DANA HAWK What I’ve Learned...
My painting medium of choice is oil on canvas or panel.
I have been painting for about 13 years. My first major in college was art — a year of drawing classes. Before starting painting classes, I switched to science as I considered painting to be very daunting.
This issue’s cover artist Dana Hawk and her dog Clinker, sitting in front of “Clinker and The Bad Ear” portrait.
Every cover of The New Barker features an original work of art by a different artist. We love supporting our local art scene, therefore most of the artists over our 11 years of publishing the magazine have been Florida-based. Once in awhile, our eyes and
hearts wander, as was the case with New York City artist Dana Hawk. The backstory on Cypress, this issue’s cover dog, was so moving, we just couldn’t resist learning more about Dana’s work and sharing it with you, our readers.
Cypress, oil on canvas, 18x24. In Dana’s Words: This painting was commissioned by a large animal veterinarian who witnessed Cypress being abused while treating a family's horse. (The kids were hitting her with a bat; they had cut her ears off with scissors). Donna, the veterinarian, offered to take Cypress off of their hands. She later paid thousands of dollars for a risky GI surgery to save her. Cypress survived and they now enjoy traveling from Virginia to Colorado regularly in Donna's RV. I left my photo shoot of Cypress
with the awareness of two characteris- tics: her strength (the branches) and her ability to become a wonderfully gentle and loving dog despite her abuse (the wings). I loved painting her.
64 THE NEW BARKER
My career as an artist began when the mother of a past boyfriend had an artist friend that I posed for with my dog. Watching her process, It occurred to me that, “hey, I understand that — I could do that.” So I bought some oil paints and dove in (ruining all of my brushes the first day because I didn’t know how to wash them out properly). After mastering the basics, I began get- ting animal commissions right from the beginning, infrequently initially, but for the past few years I’ve had a steady waiting list.
The first dog in my life was a Pointer named Buttons. My parents tell me that as a toddler, I would climb on top of him and fall asleep. As an adolescent, I would dress him up and take pictures. Poor Buttons, on both accounts.
My dog today is a shelter-rescue pit bull mix named Clinker. Her favorite hobbies include eating, squirrel chasing, snuggling, running through the woods, and eating. She has a lot of quirks, but the most endearing is that she lightly taps me on the shoulder with her paw in the middle of the night to get under the covers. I can’t resist.
She has her own studio bed, which is where she hangs out during the win- ter months, but during the summer months she’s outside, sunbathing. My studio, right now, is wonderful, as I’ve had some pretty poor ones in the past. Originally a bedroom as part of a new addition to the home, it has large windows, high ceilings, and two closets, which is great for storing art supplies in one, and packing materials in the other.
Right now I’m working on a portrait of a Bassett Hound-mix whose life was truly saved by my clients, and an Australian-themed painting for the Children’s Hospital in Denver.
Over a decade ago, my sister bought me a rolling studio cart with a clamp- on painting light. It’s the most cherished thing I own. And I’ve never had to change the bulb!
I paint from about 10:00 to 3:30, pretty much every day.
My day starts with coffee, a little news, scrambled eggs or French toast, and donning my painting uniform (jeans and hoodie).
As the day wears on, I try to get in some walking or running with Clinker (weather dependent). Other days may include photographing finished paint- ings, packing/shipping paintings, or posting work on social media and my website.
The color orange is always uplifting and modern to me.
Dante, oil on panel, 8 x 10. A tiny painting,
and yet, he is so small that it may be larger than life-size (to match his spirit).
www.TheNewBarker.com
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