An animal-loving artist has been “putting some positivity out into the world” by painting people’s pets in miniature.
Alex Birchmore, 33, began the quirky endeavour in 2014. One of her first paintings was of a three-legged black and white rescue lurcher called Cassie which her late grandmother owned.
She has since painted about 150 mini pictures of a vast array of pets, from dogs to cats, horses, rabbits and hamsters.
“I thought it would be a nice way for people to have a portrait of their pets without breaking the bank,” Mrs Birchmore, who lives in Stroud, Gloucestershire, told the PA news agency.
“I get a real satisfaction from the work because when you highlight areas of the animals in the right way you can really make the painting look like it is full of life.
“I often depict dead pets and people get quite emotional, it’s really wholesome.”
She uses photos of pets sent to her by customers as a guide.
“I do a quick sketch on the canvas to pinpoint where their eyes, nose and mouth would be placed,” she added.
“When I first started, I used acrylic paint and now I use oil-based paint.
“I usually start with the eyes and then work outwards from there and I try and make sure there’s a bit of thickness in the paint so you can tell it is hand painted, which is really important for people, especially nowadays in the age of AI.”
It takes between 40 minutes to an hour to create the paintings, typically on a 7cm by 7cm canvas. The smallest was of a dog on a 3cm by 3cm canvas.
Mrs Birchmore, who said she is “no stranger to animal life”, began by painting horses in her teens.
“I love horses, that is what I started painting as a teenager, I get so excited when I get a horse commission,” she said.
“We always had pets growing up, I used to have an old English sheepdog called Boris when I was a teenager and I’ve had a horse, budgies, dogs and cats over the years.”
Most of her customers are from across the UK and America, but she has also had commissions from people in Australia, Canada and Europe, and created a bigger animal portrait for someone in Saudi Arabia.
She said she is often touched by the stories behind the commissions, adding: “I may not be saving lives, but I’m hopefully putting some positivity out into the world.”
“Some people will go quite in depth about their pets,” she said.
“One woman told me she and her husband adopted elderly dogs from the shelter and I painted one of the dogs who had a terminal diagnosis.”
She said she has created between 30 and 40 paintings for an American counsellor, who has been one of her biggest supporters.
“I even illustrated a book with her this year and even though we have never met in person, it is like we are connected through my little paintings,” she added.
Alex Birchmore’s page can be accessed here: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/AlexBirchmoreArt
