Tag: bear

Double Snuffles

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. The worn pink noses on these two Gund Snuffles bears denote an incredible tale of destiny! These bears are the childhood toys of Katie’s sister and her husband, who are expecting a baby in September. Katie tells me that an uncanny thing that the couple has in common is that they both carried their bears around by the nose in their mouths! I wonder at what point in their relationship this was discovered, and did they immediately decide to marry at that moment? This portrait will be a gift to the couple from Katie in celebration of the new baby. Here is another Snuffles portrait I did a couple of years ago… apparently worn noses are par for the course with these bears!

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Stewie

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. A couple of days each week, I pack Sonja and what seems like everything we own into my car and commute 45 minutes north to my parents house. There’s one bag for Sonja’s stuff, one for my running clothes and shoes, a cooler for food and drink, my laptop, my giant purse, and a big bag of art gear. A welcome uptick in business this year has caused me to need to use these visits to cram in as much painting as possible while Sonja enjoys her grandparents. This was fine when it was cold, but now that it is gorgeous and warm, it hurts a little when they run off to go canoeing or swimming. My parents live in Lake Luzerne, NY, which is packed with all manner of Adirondack-y delights, such as this spot:

…where I could be found last summer basking on a rock….

…but this year, I’m mostly here at my parent’s dining-room table while the three of them are off playing.

But this past Friday, I had remembered the kitchen sink but forgotten the correct-sized canvas for the portrait commission I was planning to work on. Frustrated, I turned to the stash of toys that my mom keeps there for Sonja (which deserves an entire post unto itself – stay tuned!) and decided to paint the main bear of the house, Stewie. In keeping with what seems to be trend in my recent work, Stewie reclines on an embroidered pillow. I think that if this happens again, I should probobly go out and enjoy the lake instead… summer is short!

Collin’s Bear

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. This portrait is the second of two paintings won last year in a blockbuster Design Mom holiday jackpost giveaway. The big winner was Jo, and of her son Collin’s favorite things, she chose his toy ukulele and this wonderful blue bear to be painted. I love that the bear is sporting a rather boyish shirt along with a silky bow at the neck. He’s well rounded! He’s seated next to the same gorgeous avian pillow that appeared in the Ukulele portrait. Jo tells me that the arrival of these portraits might help Collin feel loved and special during the difficult adjustment to a new baby in the family.

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Maxie and Drum-Drum

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. Sometimes the roles our most important possessions play evolve with our own needs. Such is the case with these two bears, which belong to 4-year-old Jackson. The smaller bear, Drum-Drum, was originally a gift given to Jackson’s mother when she was pregnant… it was, in fact, intended to depict an expectant mother bear! Maxie, the large Build-a-Bear, was purchased for Maxie by his father, Jon. Eventually, Jackson took ownership of Drum-Drum and declared that it belonged with Maxie. No longer a pregnant adult female bear, Drum-Drum is now the “baby,” and Maxie is his “daddy bear.” Jon tells me that Maxie’s persona and voice are often Jackson’s vehicle for explaining his own feelings. “Maxie has had all your experiences,” Jon says. If you tell Jackson that you’ve been skiing, Jackson might explain the Maxie has also been skiing, and he found it to be a just a little scary, but fun. Now that Jackson’s parents no longer live together, Jon is hoping that this portrait, a gift for his upcoming birthday, will make the bears’ presence felt in Jon’s home even if they have been accidently left at mom’s!

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Marry Kate

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. That’s Marry Kate with two r’s, making it potentially a command and a pun, but I’m sure that was not the intent of Zoe when she named this bear at age four. If it was, then clever girl! Marry Kate, a Ty Beanie Bear (which is larger than a Beanie Baby,) was a gift from Zoe’s grandmother when she had her tonsils out. This portrait will be a gift for Zoe’s upcoming twelfth birthday from her mother, Shannon.

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Pyjama Bear

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

9″x12″ acrylic, 2011. Stephen wrote me that his wife was looking at my website and “complaining that our kids don’t actually have favorite stuffed animals to paint.” His clever, thoughtful solution to this problem was to order a portrait of his wife’s own beloved chilhood bear as a gift for her upcoming birthday! This well-worn bear is missing an eye, which he strategically and stylishly hides with his pyjama cap.

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Bear and Dog

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. Six-month-old Thomas sleeps through the night only when tucked in with his bear blanket, and during the day this blue Gund dog rattle is his favorite. Thomas’ father Bob vividly describes the circumstances: “Lord knows my wife and mother-in-law have buried this child under toys, yet he always seems to dig through them to find this dog rattle to shove in his mouth!” Bob thoughtfully envisioned this painting as a Mother’s Day gift for his very loved and lucky wife!

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Brother Bear

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. The juxtaposition between the current state of “Brother Bear” and this photo of his of his original condition is, as Nate’s mother Claudia pointed out, “fascinating!” A Baby Gund, this once fluffy and cream-colored bear is now a bit rangy and matted, with grey, dreadlocked fur mostly obscuring his eyes. Claudia ordered this portrait to honor Brother Bear on what appears to be the brink of his becoming obsolete to 7-year-old Nate. This bear replaced an identical bear called “Baby Bear,” lost four years ago, that had been with Nate from birth.

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Radar

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

9″x12″ acrylic, 2011. Rychelle was born on an Army base in Colorado, and this bear was given to her by one of her father’s Army mates while she was still in the hospital. This was 1977, and Rychelle reckons he was called “Radar” because he looked so much like the bear belonged to the character Radar on the show M*A*S*H. She says that his eyes are a little scratched, his red mouth has disappeared, and his nose is barely hanging on, but he’s held up pretty well after nearly 34 years of love!

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Bumpy Bear 2

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. This is the second of two portraits of bears named Bumpy. Both toys are from Build-a-Bear, and were bought in memory of a beloved grandfather called Bumpy for his grandchildren.

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