Monthly Archives: May 2012

I was so excited to commission Claire Dunaway to paint Tucker, my sister’s Yorkie, for a surprise birthday present. My niece in California and I emailed anecdotes and doggie pictures, and Claire was able to capture Tucker’s personality perfectly. Claire was wonderful to work with and sent progress updates along the way so she would get Tucker’s colors and expressions just right. She even seemed to fall in love with Tucker in the process of painting him.

When my sister opened her package, she exclaimed, “It’s Tucker! And look, it even shows him sticking out his tongue the way he does when he wants attention!” I love Claire’s whimsical style and am so happy that I was able to give such a special, unique gift to my sister.
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Working with Claire Dunaway was a complete pleasure, from start to finish! It’s such a treat to work with someone who loves what they do, so that their joy overflows into their work. That describes Claire to a T. Claire Dunaway is so gifted at capturing the essence of a pet, the way they cock their head or hold their posture, the look of love in their eyes, the variance in their coloring.

Several years ago, my husband’s parents commissioned Claire to paint a portrait of our beloved black lab, Jasper. We were positively thrilled with it…so much so that we thought of Claire this past year when we wanted to get a special gift for my mother for her birthday. Claire listened patiently, and sifted through a dozen or so photographs to get a feel for my parent’s dog. She adapts her style to suit her client’s needs and wants. She kept us in the loop & sent pictures via email so that we could ask for subtle changes along the way as she prepared the portrait of my mother’s sweet dog Sophie.

My mother was overcome with emotion when she received her portrait. She will treasure hers for a lifetime, as we will treasure ours.
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