Feature Friday - Sarah Regan Snavely of Sarah Regan Snavely Studios

For this Feature Friday, it's hard to know where to begin!  It's the main reason Sarah Regan Snavely of the Studio by the same name was not the very first Feature Friday post- her work is so immensly amazing that it can be intimidating to find the words to describe her work!

I first found Sarah's work by searching for greyhound artwork on the interwebs shortly after getting Ana in October of '06.  At the time, there really wasn't much available (and there still isn't a great deal now) in the way of Sighthound work.  Once I found her site, I was entranced by not only Sarah's portfolio of work, but also by her study of the greyhound!  What sets her apart from other artists who feature greyhounds in their work is that Sarah is the proud owner of a pack of greyhounds, herself, so she has had ample opportunity to study their lithe, elegant, muscular bodies and use them as models for her work.  She lives in the Southwestern corner of North Dakota and has a studio there where she works mostly in clay making sculptures and tiles, and occasionally working in sterling silver for jewelry.

Here are a variety of small sculptures made by Sarah and featured on her homepage- you can see the amazing detail and how she captures every expression and pose of the greyhound so flawlessly!

She creates memory boxes like this one pictured below as well...having not yet experienced the pain of losing one of my greys, I hope it is a very long time before I have to think about purchasing one for my own, but they are still beautiful works of art I can enjoy now!

And here are some of the types of tiles that she creates- so beautiful!  She has been able to capture expression and motion even in the tiles!

Sarah is also a fellow Etsy seller- you can find her shop here, but she's currently away for an event.  You can, however, click a button on her shop to be emailed when she returns.  Her items move fast, so if you are looking for a particular item, you may need to stalk her shop for a while (or convo to see if she'll do a custom piece).

You can stay in the know by joining her Facebook page- she posts lots of photos of pieces she's currently working on, and you can also shop her Etsy page from there.  Enjoy!

Featured Friday - Elle J. Wilson of Almost an Angel

Every Friday, I would like to show appreciation for my fellow artists and crafters by showcasing them here in a segment I'm calling "Feature Friday".  I hope these posts will not only raise awareness for these amazingly skillful artists, but also illustrate the vast variety of greyhound-inspired work available!  And now, with no further ado, I would like to announce our very first featured artist- Elle J. Wilson from Almost an Angel.

I was first exposed to the amazing work of Elle J. Wilson through GreytArt, which is a fantastic resource for finding greyhound-themed art featuring a variety of artists.  Elle began painting greyhounds in 2005, when she received her first commission, and was inspired and enchanted by their mystique.  She captures them in watercolor/ink pen, oil, or acrylic, and each one has a magical quality to it!  Elle has a fantastic talent for capturing the expressiveness of the greyhound face- soulful, timid, haughty, adoring...the list goes on!  If you purchase a print, it is hand-signed, titled and numbered by Elle, personally, and comes with a Signed Certificate of Authenticity.

I own a watercolor/pen ink print entitled "A Little Attentive" which has become a cherished addition to our art collection.  The print seems to be no longer available- I can't even find more than a thumbnail image of it, but Elle has an extensive variety of greyhound (and other breed/animals) work to choose from.  It also makes the print we have feel even more special knowing that it is a limited edition!

Here is a thumbnail of the print we purchased through GreytArt:

Another example of a Watercolor/Ink Pen print - "In the Doldrums" by Elle J. Wilson

An example of her Oil painting titled "The Simple Life" by Elle J. Wilson

 There are a few ways to purchase some of Elle's greyt work to call your own:

1. Through her Etsy shop - prints and cards of Elle's work are available
2. Through her website - you can purchase prints of her artwork, or you can commission your own custom piece!
3. Through GreytArt - a site that "strives to provide high quality art work that promotes Greyhounds as loving pets and great athletes."  They also support rescue and adoption efforts by contributing a portion of all proceeds to organizations that promote greyhound rescue and adoption efforts.

I have already scoped out my next purchase from the amazing selection available- it's going to be "A Little Tired"available on Elle's Etsy shop.