1000 years.

I think I will title my painting of Kona "1000 Years" and look at it as an ode to the one thousand years or so that we've been evolving with dogs. I need to talk to my dad about where he was reading about that.

So, when I think about a painting as a portfolio piece like this (and pretty much every project I've been thinking of starting), I get the thought into my head about what's so special about a some painting of some dog (no offense, Kona).

I guess when I paint something like this it's not necessarily to say, look how realistically I can transfer a real life image into paint. It's more that painting realistically is an obsessive and exhausting process. It takes discipline and sacrifice. But when I think about the hours that go into a painting and the miles of thought that run through one's head as he or she paints, for a painting of someone you love, like Kona, those thoughts and feelings are part of the painting, too. You don't see it when you look at the painting, but when you think about it you know it must be there. Those feelings and ideas live in the paint.

So, a relationship with a dog is so special. As I paint, I am thinking miles of thoughts about how much I love Kona, and how amazing that relationship it.