By: Mia Cugasi
What do I mean by emotional economics? The term itself is sort of a paradox being that economics is a science studying the management of resources based on societal incentives and politics and an economist referring to his or her decisions as emotional, would be… career suicide. But everyone, even republicans, occasionally make financial decisions based on emotions over logic.
How does this relate to pet portraits? Well every artist, no matter his or her style, has been asked to do a pet portrait, and almost none of them want to take on the task. It’s ironic that people who don’t even consider themselves as art collectors most often have contemplated commissioning a custom portrait of their cat or dog yet artists and illustrators who can barely keep the lights on scoff at the mission. So what’s the deal here? Why does everyone want the art that no one wants to make? Here are two perspectives on why this is a conundrum and then let’s get into how as an artist, or collector, we can resolve this issue.
Why Everyone Wants a Pet Portrait
The reason everyone wants a painting commemorating their sweet sweet Petey the cat is what it represents: unconditional love. Most people have a hard time defining their aesthetic choices. They may see a work of art they like but they worry it won’t match the sofa or it will clash with the wedding photos so they settle for some soulless overly edited enlarged photo of Amsterdam or a buffalo or something massively reproduced and sold at Ikea and call it a day. But a picture of Fluffy? Words can’t describe.
Our pets represent love without the social complications. Worshiping your best friend with a commemorative painting feels natural. It also feels permanent. The only hard thing about loving a pet is knowing they will most likely pass before you, and losing a pet is beyond devastating. Photos really don’t do a pet justice. Occasionally you might catch the right lighting and your dog is actually looking at the camera but even then it feels disposable. What even are phone camera pics? Besides using them as wallpaper they rarely make it into the physical world. The reason for that is pictures from your iPhone don’t capture essence. It’s like scanning a document more than crystallizing a magic moment. Real film cameras do a good job at this but even they feel somewhat disposable. Paintings just feel sacred, like what your precious furry friend really deserves.
Having a custom portrait of your pet also feels more socially acceptable. It’s a little odd to have your spouse painted on your wall—god forbid the likeness is off—but even if Rover’s face is a little wonky, it’s adorable! We can lean into exaggerating an animal’s features because it adds character. It also feels like having that painting done is doing something about the inevitable loss of your pet. As if you could somehow prove to your cat or dog how much you really do love them beyond kisses and treats.
Why Artists Hesitate
So then why don’t more artists embrace the challenge? For one, pet portraits aren’t exactly highly valued in the fine art world. Despite being meaningful and technically challenging they’re often seen as less serious or even vapid. Not to mention one or two successful pet portraits and now you’re known as “the pet portrait artist” which feels more like being a machine as opposed to creating original work representing your unique perspective. Not a very satisfying way to self-expression.
Possibly worst of all is the emotional stakes are disproportionate to the client’s expectation. I don’t know why but every time I’ve been asked to do a pet portrait it’s like the person just discovered that their phone has a camera, took one picture of their dog in a closet, and expects me to turn it into literally the Mona Lisa. It’s like oh how interesting you hired my 65 year old dad with a GoPro to take the reference photo. Big dramatic sigh
Finding a Solution
So what are some economic solutions? How can we meet this demand without sacrificing artistic integrity? As an artist I actually love painting animals but on my own terms. Meaning if a client approached me about painting a pet I would show them my portfolio and how I’ve included animals previously. I don’t typically do a traditional composition of a zoomed in ¾ view head shot. It’s more my style to create an interesting environment and incorporate the animal in what I’m already interested in painting. I find the end result is more sophisticated and makes the experience elusive, like the pet is now a myth instead of just a golden-doodle.
If possible, offer to take the photo reference yourself and include it in the final price. Artists understand better what makes a good reference photo versus a good photo taken by the client. If you are looking to have a pet portrait done and you’re sort of underwhelmed by the over saturated market of Photoshop face swap on a rainbow background, consider finding an artist whose work you value independent of the subject. See if they would be interested in working in their own style and incorporating a calico cat with the same markings as yours into one of their compositions whether it be abstract or representational.
There is nothing wrong with having a more centered traditional pet portrait on your wall and it really is a smart emotional investment. I regret not making more paintings of my dog, Megan, before she passed. If I had the chance she would be the subject of many of my paintings. Now I can only paint her as I remember her, and it may not be as accurate as an up close photo, but honestly my ethereal memories of her feel more personal, like she’s still with me.