Inspiration Is Where You Find It: How Dogs Playing Poker Changed My Life
From Dogs Playing Poker series by Cassius Marcellus Coolidge.
Photoshop collage by Paul Kellerhals
The first piece of art I remember growing up was a painting of several dogs sitting upright around a table, drinking, smoking, and playing poker. If you’re of a certain age, I bet you instantly recognized this image. There were several versions created over the years, but the general theme was always the same: dogs partying like humans.
The dog painting of my youth was at the home of some family friends. It was surrounded by an ornately gilded frame, fairly large, and prominently displayed on a wood-paneled living room wall next to a colorful, Lazyboy-style recliner. I’m not sure if the chair was specifically selected to match the colors of this piece, but it managed to do so quite well.
I was five or six years old at the time, but I distinctly recall being totally amazed by the dogs’ activities. It blew my young mind: dogs acting like people? For some reason, one of the dogs in the foreground was passing a playing card to another dog under the table, a gesture that stood out to me even then. I’m sure I wasn’t thinking the dog was actually cheating at poker, just being a bit of a sneaky devil, as all good dogs can be.
Whenever we’d stop by this house for a visit, I immediately went over to the picture, marveling at it as if it were the Mona Lisa. I didn’t realize it then, but this was the beginning of a lifelong obsession - of making, collecting, and displaying artwork. Little did I know that this famously tacky dog print would eventually set me on the path to become an artist in my own right.
Today, my walls are lavishly covered with art pieces I’ve made myself or purchased over the years - no doubt a direct result of my dearly coveting that piece of dog art growing up. I’m proud that some of the artwork I’ve collected has had a similar impact on a few visitors to my home. Maybe not as profound an impact as the dogs playing poker had on me, but friends have been spurred to seek out their own original artwork after viewing mine.
One piece I feel very fortunate to own is a limited edition print by John Baldessari titled Nose/Silhouette: Yellow. For whatever reason, this particular piece seemed to strike a chord with a friend from the moment he first noticed it on my wall. It’s a simple piece but stunningly bold. The image consists of a solid bright yellow shape in the loose outline of a man’s face with a crudely cut out photorealistic image of his nose sitting on top of the yellow field. My friend loved it so much he immediately asked if I could help him find the same print for his home, which I did. It was the first real piece of artwork he ever purchased, but it hasn’t been the last. Once you get the art collecting bug, you’re in it for the long haul.
Inspired by living with this piece for a few years, one day my friend asked if I could help him with a personal art project. He wanted to create a companion piece to the Baldessari print he could display together, featuring his beloved yellow Labrador, Wagner, who had passed recently. How could I say no? As an artist with a background in professional illustration, I knew how meaningful this piece would be if I could capture the essence of Wagner, while staying true to Baldessari’s original creation. With a little effort and some handy knowledge of printmaking, I was able to produce a Wagner companion print that he now loves as much as the original piece. I couldn’t have been happier to share my skills to create something that brought a friend so much joy.
While my taste in art has changed dramatically over the years, my love for animals has not. Getting out for long daily walks during the pandemic instead of going to a gym has exposed me to more dogs than I can count, each with a distinct look and personality, each worthy of its own portrait if only there were time. And though I have yet to see a dog pass a playing card to another under the table, I still believe the little devils are capable of it.