Title:  “Best in Show”

Artist: Stacey DeGrace

Medium:  Watercolor and permanent marker

Size: 14″ x 11″ x 0″

Price:  $1000.00  Contact National Purebred Dog Day to inquire about purchasing this piece

Artist’s Thoughts: I wanted to have a well-rounded poster with 5 dogs. I chose a Jeep because I think it really speaks “America”, a lot of dog owners drive them, and most have bumper stickers. I choose 3 of those breeds because friends own, breed and show them. The other 2 I chose because I thought they would fit the painting well. I picked orange for the jeep color to compliment my dog breeds. I chose Florida for the state plate after researching and finding out they had the largest AKC membership. I picked mostly AKC stickers for my “decor” but I didn’t want to add too much and distract the viewer from the dogs.

I liked the idea of a Jeep layout with the dogs looking out of the back window. I went with orange for the jeep color, and I feel it would really frame the breeds I chose well. I have friends who have show dogs and I used the photos of their dogs as reference for three of the breeds. (Rottweiler, Chihuahua & the French Bulldog) I wanted a Standard Poodle in the layout because they have such great hair and I wanted to paint that. I chose a Labrador because they are so popular and sporty. I researched what state has the most AKC members and that was the state of Florida so that is why I decided on that state plate. I asked my friends to help me brainstorm a personalized plate and one of them came up with BSTNSHW and I loved it! I liked my idea of covering the back of the jeep with bumper stickers. I could of went crazy with this, but I didn’t want to draw attention away from the dogs. I used watercolor which is my medium of choice and permanent marker in some places.