Back when I lectured at a university in the visual communication stream, we had a brilliant second year module that simply asked, ‘Can Graphic Design Save The World?’
This was the students’ introduction to understanding target audiences, framing problems to solve, intensive research, identifying insights, and figuring out how graphic design can help. It was a fascinating module and a tough one, too. Even as a tutor, it was challenging to push students and having them leave crits in a frustrated huff, but of course the results were always worth it.
When I began taking my illustration practice more intentionally (i.e. calling it a practice, establishing a sort of brand persona, having a sense of values, etc.) I questioned how I might use this module’s learning outcomes myself. I didn’t do anywhere near the number of deep dives my past students had, but I did finally come upon an idea that would work: Pet Portraits!
My grand idea was that I would be donating my time and effort, and people would pay to have me draw their pets. 100% of the proceeds would go towards animal welfare, namely two places — a rescue organisation and a shelter — that I trusted and have followed for years. I put the call out with a simple post detailing specifics and prices in the caption. Several hours passed and, while people were liking and sharing it, no one was placing an order. I was feeling anxious, wondering if my campaign had gone a bit puss1 when in fact it finally kicked off with… Puss! A former office cat, beloved by her carer but no longer with us, this portrait was in memoriam, which seemed an auspicious way to start.
Now that the seal was broken, a few more requests trickled in. A dog behaviourist shared the portrait she had requested herself, lending more eyes to my cause. Suddenly there were so many requests I found myself voluntarily using an Excel sheet.
As I continued drawing other peoples’ pets, I found that my technique would improve slightly with each commission. The beach behind Luna, for example, was very quick and satisfying, especially the foamy bits.
I also found it was an opportunity to illustrate different characters — both human and canine. For example, two almost completely black dogs look totally different thanks to their contrasting coat textures.
The young and the old are now a part of my portfolio, demonstrated here by a toddler surrounded by his sizeable pet family, and Uncle Rusty taking coconut inventory with his faithful Lucy2.
I also realised that having some kind of organic element — really mostly just literal plant life — made all the difference in each composition, as demonstrated here in a garden setting and an indoor fish tank.
So that’s a wrap for the first round of Pet Paw-traits. I think I priced it far too low considering how long I ended up taking over each visual and given that it was entirely for charity. Hopefully next time I run this fundraiser I’ll get the balance right!
🐕🐈🐠🐩🐈⬛🌿🌳
A Sri Lankan-ism the equivalent of a damp squib — something you thought would be impressive that falls flat. Both are references to fireworks that don’t quite go off with a bang, with ‘puss’ referencing the literal fizzing or hissing sound emitted by an underwhelming firework.
Both were not in the best of health, and shortly after this artwork was done, both sadly passed. First the master, then a day later, the hound — my jaw dropped when his youngest daughter told me.
This is absolutely awesome!! I feel similarly that with everything going on in the world - I too want to leverage my art for good. Stoked you’re doing this :)