AnnesArt.com

I just have to tell you about the trophies that were created for the Tibetan Terrier Club of America's Cut Down Sweepstakes at the National Specialty Show.  First, you are probably wondering what a cut down sweepstakes is.  Well, you see, in normal competition Tibetan Terriers can only be shown in their unaltered coat.  This means that if they have had a nice bob or are sporting bangs they can't strut their stuff in the show ring.  Leave it to the 2012 National Specialty's innovative chairman, Laurel MacMinn, to come up with a special sweepstakes competition for TTs sporting a new 'do.

And you know what they say, if you build it they will come.  And come they did.  Sporting coiffures of all types.  Some sheared like sheep.  One made into a Chinese Crested.  There was a beehive, a bouffant and several bowl cuts.  A chignon and a comb over in honor Donald Trump.  No buns I'm afraid. No cornrows or dreadlocks.  There were pigtails and rattails, a shag and an updo.  What?  No Dorothy Hamel wedge?

Chicago Folk Artist Anne Leuck Feldhaus created original artwork as the awards for Best Cut Down and Best Cut Down of Opposite.   I have written about Anne before, but let me say it again SHE IS AMAZING!

Working out of her Chicago studio, Anne celebrates life with paint. Her simplified forms, sophisticated compositions and vivid color palettes provide a bold mix of contemporary folk and urban pop art.  As a pet adoption advocate, Feldhaus uses her animal-themed art to encourage support of animal welfare and shelter organizations.

Self-taught in painting, Anne retains her childhood aesthetic, which was surely influenced by many Sunday mornings staring at the stained glass windows in a Catholic church. Her color sense was further developed mixing her own frosting colors while baking cutout cookies with her mother. Many of those colors still make up her palette today.

Anne has exhibited nationally in galleries, at fine art fairs, and on-line. Specializing in custom Dog and Pet Portraits, she is also an illustrator and has licensed her designs for stationery and home decor products. Her work has appeared on expressway billboards (in Kansas & Georgia), neighborhood banners, t-shirts, movies (The Number 23 and The Break Up) and even farm fields (an 11 acre field sculpture).  Press includes features in publications such as The Chicago Tribune and The Chicago Sun-Times, Modern Dog and on programs such as Art Beat Chicago and Animal Planet. Anne’s works hang in private collections in over 30 U.S. States, as well as internationally.

Visit AnneArt.com to learn more about Anne and to order a portrait of your best friend.