Blue Dog - 4/1/14

Our next project will be inspired by Cajun artist George Rodrigue and his famous "Blue Dog".  Mr Rodrigue was born in Lousiana in 1944.  He studied art and went on to paint Louisiana landscapes depicting moss clad oak trees native to the area known as French Louisiana.  He became famous in the 1990s when he painted Blue Dog based on a Cajun legend.  The dog's shape and stance was modeled after Rodrigue's deceased dog Tiffany.

Rodrigue wrote on Blue Dog "The yellow eyes are really the soul of the dog. He has this piercing stare.  People say the dog keeps talking to them with the eyes, always saying something different. People who have seen a Blue Dog painting always remember it. They are really about life, about mankind searching for answers. The dog never changes position.  He just stares at you. And you are looking at him, looking for some answers, "Why are we here?" and he's just looking back at you, wondering the same. The dog doesn't know. You can see this longing in his eyes, this longing for love, answers."

Not all dogs are blue.  Oak trees are common in his work.

We will look at Rodrigue's work.  We will be sketching out our version of "Blue Dog".  Either a close up or...

a full body version. 

We will be using tempera paints for this project.

A fun background can be added.