Hello, thank you for visiting my site. My name is Hiroko Ishimaru. I come from Japan and have settled down in the U.S. over 20 years.
I went to University of New Mexico and received the B.F.A. degree in Studio Art, where I enjoyed learning the Abstract Expressionism, and later I got the M.I.S./M.B.A. degree from the same school.
In my childhood, my family had a stray dog who settled down in our home, but all I remember is that he bit my rain shoes! It was my dream to own my own dogs, but it was long time later in U.S. that I finally got my furry members. My first and second dogs were Australian Shepherd mix coming from a pound and a rescue group. My first dog, Godzilla thought his life was going to be terminated, so I still remember he refused to come out of the cage when I went to adopt him. Our household includes three furry family members – two Blue-Heeler mix dogs who are from different rescue groups as well as a Border Collie.
I started painting them for fun, which my friends spotted and mentioned one day that I should start painting for other dog owners. Gee, what a wonderful idea that was, I love and adore dogs, and it was something I have loved to do! So here we go, Paws & Paint officially started in 2005, and ever since, I have served many dogs lovers all over the States for over ten years.
Sometimes my custom portrait served as a surprise (i.e. sneaky) birthday present, sometimes as a beautiful memory, and sometimes as a fun house ornament. Each dog has unique dognality and special meanings to us, and I love the fact that portraits I create bring some meanings to dog lovers like you and me. When I work with portraits with you, I would really appreciate that I get information about your furry family member, as I want to understand how you see your beloved him/her as close as you do. Sometimes there’re families who ask me to paint their family pets – a dog and a cat, and even other family pets, such as a turtle!, which is perfectly fine with me! They are so special, aren’t they?
Thank you again for visiting my site, and may the portrait of your dog brighten your day.
Hiroko
