“For the Love of Dog” Brings Canine Art Into the Limelight

If you’re the kind of person who only wants to go to an art exhibition if it involves dogs, well, then, you’re our kind of person. And we’ve got the perfect art rec for you. On Saturday, Hashimoto Contemporary in Los Angeles just opened For The Love Of Dog, “a new exhibition featuring art toasting lifelong relationships between (hu)man and dog.” The best news about this event — highly curated for dog lovers everywhere and featuring more than 30 artists — is that Hashimoto is presenting it in partnership with the LA-based nonprofit Wags and Walks.

Arts and culture publication Juxtapoz says the following about some of the works you can find at this exhibition: “Erin Armstrong’s poised and posed pups take on an air of their owners’ elegance, while Joey Wolf’s wrinkly gray bulldog lazes on a pink couch, licking his lips, her belly on display...Thomas Martinez attempts to keep a dog away from his ceramic chicken bones by discarding them under a tufted tree; Laura Noguera illustrates a woman crying a puddle of tears for her dog to drink, still caring for it even after they are gone.”

Most works feature dogs (or sometimes just a paw or a snout) in various mediums, including oil, acrylic, ceramic — each with a different take on pup parenthood.

The opening reception on Saturday doubled as an adoption event with the org, where people could come view the art, as well as the adoptable dogs. The exhibit, which runs through Saturday, September 9, features some of The Wildest’s favorite artists, including Katie Kimmel and Lorien Stern.

Kimmel, whose work includes sculptures, furniture, graphic apparel, and home goods, spoke with The Wildest in January 2022 about her work, which is very much inspired by her two Chihuahuas, Pony and Muffin; Saint Bernard, Boss; and a tortoise named Joey. She makes custom art of other people’s pets, too, and three of those ceramic vases are featured in the Hashimoto show.

“Daytona Peppers and her beautiful children Puppy Elmer and Princess Almond <3”, the artist wrote of her ceramics.

When she spoke with us last year, she told us about her process as she incorporates real-life dogs into her work — and how she featured her own at her wedding.

“The customs are the job part of my art process, but I definitely make a lot of sculptures of my dogs for gallery purposes and also personal. My wedding was a big making-art-about-my-dogs outlet. I’ve got a disco ball of my dog Pony’s head right now that I’m not quite sure what to do with, but it was a lot of fun.”