Continental US - Animal Paintings

Artist Comments
Artist Jessica JH Roller paints a playful portrait of a king toad surrounded by white daylilies. "He lives in a quaint cottage alone, but he has a human frien...

Artist Comments
Artist Candice Eisenfeld shares the myth of The Dancing Birds and the Flood, "A young shepherd in China interpreted the dances of birds in the sky. He warned the elders in his region about a looming flood, but no-one believed him. Taking matters into his own hands, he made 1000 cranes from paper, working for weeks with little sleep with the wish to keep his townspeople safe. When the floods came, his town was spared heavy destruction while nearby villages were swept away. The young shepherd was later called Yu the Great."

About the Artist
As an American exploring issues of identity, artist Candice Eisenfeld paints through the lens of the first American art...

Artist Comments
A daydreaming twelve-year-old holds her velvety black cat, surrounded by a jungle of houseplants. The painting is inspired by the artist Jessica JH Roller's daughter, Wren, and her ever-loyal cat, Pepper. Created using layers of high-quality acrylic paint, this piece captures a moment of serene contemplation amidst a lush, green backdrop.

About the Artist
Artist Jessica JH Roller paints whimsical and playful compositions of animals and people, marked by bold colors and primitivist linework. She distills a scene into a few simple shapes, using color to create contrast and vibrancy, often choosing palettes that reflect pop culture. "My adopted kittens, Tony and Larry, opened my eyes and unleashed the artist inside me," shares Jessica. "After, I started to notice birds, trees, color, everything." Jessica brings to life her dynamic creations in the comfort of her studio in her century-old home. She enjoys listening to music and audiobooks while painting with her 18-year-old acrylic-covered easel. When not painting, Jessica cherishes time with her family and five cats, teaches yoga, and enjoys cycling along the river.

Words that describe this painting: portrait, girl, houseplants, cat, folk, pet, friendship, love, foliage, animals, people, primitive, acrylic painting, pink

Girl with Black Cat...

Artist Comments
A stoic portrait of a cheetah looking out over a glowing sunset, with the animal's cool and collected pose amplified by the painterly surroundings. "This piece gives a sense of the calm before the storm - of inner peace," says artist Miranda Gamel. "The cheetah is looking out into the fast landscape, looking for a sign, all while knowing there will be one to find."

About the Artist
The daughter of two artists, Miranda Gamel grew up with artistic aspirations. “When I was young, I couldn’t imagine that I would be anything else… it only seemed natural,” she says. She further developed her skills with her teachers (and fellow UGallery artists) John and Elli Milan. Miranda’s paintings exist on the edge of the surreal and the fantastical while remaining grounded in human emotion. Each painting, through its dynamic imagery, conveys the spirit embodied by the composition’s subject. Miranda’s ultimate goal is to portray each individual “being their true, raw, authentic self.”

Words that describe this painting: cheetah, wildlife, big cat, desert, sunset, animal, calm, expressionism, animals, non-representational, oil painting, purple

New Horizon...

Artist Comments
Stacked like rocks on the shore, artist Diane Flick plays with scale, color, texture, and joyful imagery—creating a quirky, awkward, and jovial childlike ba...

Artist Comments
With a determined expression, a Pointer leaps out of the water over a colorful beach ball. Artist Jeff Fleming describes his painting style as kinetic impressionism. He started the piece with a pencil sketch on the canvas, then with gloved hands, he applied oil paint using his fingers. Details were later added using brushes. Once these layers of paint dried, he moved the piece to his studio floor. "At this point, I whisked paint in random but authoritative strokes - a speckling technique which replicates water splashing."

About the Artist
Artist Jeff Fleming uses fingerpainting to create exuberant portraits of dogs. Growing up in Southern California, Jeff was first introduced to fingerpainting in kindergarten. He painted through high school and college and won several art awards, including Best of Show in a city wide student competition. After graduating with a degree in journalism and advertising, he went to work as an art director. For the next 40 years, he created print, radio and television ads for a number of top agencies. "After retiring in 2019, the clouds of stress and pressure cleared and allowed me to set my creative energy free," says Jeff. He began developing new techniques focused on the excitement and energy of painting. Today, he uses a variety of methods and tools, including fingerpainting wearing nitrile gloves, traditional paint brushes, bamboo shish kebab sticks, kite string, spraypaint and splattering. While working, Jeff always listens to music, including Broadway musicals, dance music and rhythmic Hawaiian tunes.

Words that describe this painting: Pointer, dog, impressionism, Iris Scott...

Artist Comments
Artist Rachel Srinivasan presents a surreal portrayal of the nine of swords tarot card. A majestic and mysterious white bison remains strong as a falling blad...

Artist Comments
"This painting was inspired by the idea that we are shaped by outside forces, but remain unchanged, we persist in the face of adversity," says Shao. "It is what makes us human." Shao's energetic paintings of stallions explore and illustrate movement through nature. This work represents an immigrant's journey, filled with strength and perseverance. Shao incorporates both contemporary watercolor and traditional ink calligraphy styles into this series of oil paintings.

About the Artist
Art has been with Shao Yuan Zhang for the majority of his extraordinary, and at times difficult, life journey. Raised in communist China...

Artist Comments
Artist Emil Morhardt depicts a family of aquatic birds he saw in a northern Iceland lake. "The mother bird saw me and swam across to proudly show off her chick," says Emil. With near-photographic detail, the subjects stand out vividly against a clean white background.

About the Artist
Emil Morhardt is an acrylic painter from Santa Barbara, California who expresses his passion for birds through realistic acrylic paintings. He paints at home in a studio room that has large windows and a north-facing view of the mountains. He observes the animals from this window, watching roadrunners, foxes, bobcats, deer, and coyote run by. Surrounded by this wildlife, Emil paints bird portraits reminiscent of those by artist John James Audubon. He bases his paintings off hundreds of photographs he takes of birds in the wild and at wildlife recovery centers. Emil captures the freedom and inquisitiveness that birds display...

Artist Comments
This painting portrays an American plains bison grazing on the vast grasslands of the American West. The animal is wrapped in an impressionistic swirl of soft...

Artist Comments
A whimsical and dramatic portrait of a stylish figure posed with a lion. "I wanted to create a striking fantasy, playing up the sophistication of the model ag...

Artist Comments
Nestled among layers of pink and contrasting leaves, a bright red-breasted bird prepares for flight. A twig seemingly dangles from its beak. Its vibrant pluma...