bring on the funny (yet artful) dogs

You know what always cheers me up?

William Wegman's dogs.

While not the only artistic endeavor of Wegman's by a long shot, the playful work with his Weimeraners gained enduring affection among the general public in the 80's. And I say, if a modern artist finds a way to make everybody like art, then YAY.

The dogs - well, they're solemn and gray and elegant, and obligingly drapey. You'll see what I mean as you look through these tiny samples of a huge body of work:

early black and white film on YouTube showing the genesis of his idea

Alphabet Soup, a fully fleshed work for children (uh, everybody)

Up to 130 photos on Artnet - you can click on them to enlarge

I wish I could have found a snippet of his Jack and Jill, which is my favorite: the dogs, dressed in character, are peering around as they are (obviously) shot at diagonal to go "up the hill" while in the background some hysterically off-kilter music plays.

Anyway, we all need a laugh. Hope you find some!