Tillamook Cheddar (dog)

Tillamook Cheddar (b. Greenwich, Connecticut, January 17, 1999; also called Tillie for short) is a Jack Russell terrier dog from the United States. She is the world's most widely shown and successful living animal painter, [http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/media/pages/tan2005.html Tillamook Cheddar ] ] having since 1999 had 16 solo exhibitions of her work, throughout the United States as well as in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Bermuda. [http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/bio.htm Tillamook Cheddar - Bio ] ] [http://www.bermudamasterworks.com/1/events/175?id=497fc50567e4391fb0b606dfb21a7faf MasterWorks.BM ] ] Her paintings have sold for up to US $2,150. [ [http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/media/pages/ny_dog.html Untitled Document ] ]

Background

A 16-pound (7.25 kg) Jack Russell terrier with a white coat and brown and black markings on her face, she is named for Tillamook Cheddar, a brand of cheese produced in the U.S. state of Oregon. She lives in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, with her owner, F. Bowman Hastie III (b. 1969), a freelance writer and editor. [Prior to moving to the Clinton Hill neighborhood in 2007, they lived in the Prospect Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn.] Hastie, who grew up in Oregon, calls himself Tillamook Cheddar's "assistant," [http://celebritydogwatcher.com/?p=1517 Celebrity Dog Watcher - Digging up Celebrity Dog News - Arf! » CDW Interview: Tillamook Cheddar by way of Bowman Hastie ] ] and also serves as her agent, publicist, and manager. [http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/10/1021_021021_dogswithjobs2_2.html Brooklyn Dog a Rising Star in New York Art Scene ] ]

Hastie received Tillamook Cheddar as a 30th birthday gift from his mother, picking her out of a litter in Greenwich, Connecticut. Hastie first noted her artistic inclinations when she was six months of age; while he was sitting on his couch writing on a legal pad, she jumped up and began scratching at the pad. Believing that she was attempting to communicate in some way, he affixed a sheet of carbon paper to the pad and she scratched her first image. Her first exhibition, "Dog Tag," was held when she was just nine months old, in October 1999. [ [http://www.magicpropagandamill.com/who/friends/tilla/tilport.html Magic Propaganda Mill/Tillamook Cheddar ] ] [ [http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/shows/dogtag/dogtag.html dogtag ] ]

Working process

Tillamook Cheddar executes abstract expressionist paintings, drawings, etchings, and sculpture using her claws and teeth to scratch and sometimes even tear her materials. ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/work.htm gallery]} Her primary medium is two-dimensional works created by the use of paint-coated Denril vellum transfer paper, which allows her to transfer color to her artistic surface (usually lithograph paper backed by a mat board or foam board), to which the transfer paper is taped securely. [In place of lithograph paper, she has also occasionally used suede as an artistic surface.] The transfer paper is covered with a layer of clear Mylar, and sealed with packing tape to protect it from damage. The color (in the form of a non-toxic oil paint) is transferred onto the paper in a manner similar to carbon paper, without the use of brushes, palette knives, or similar tools.

Before Tillamook Cheddar creates an artwork, Hastie selects and arranges her materials and the color(s) to be used. Tillamook Cheddar then grasps the materials with her mouth and takes them to her work space. When she has placed the materials on the floor or couch, she typically begins working in a vigorous, almost frenzied manner, standing over the surface and scratching and biting its surface as if digging. This process, which also involves a considerable amount of barking and growling, continues for a period of up to 40 minutes for each color used (although public demonstrations are generally restricted to 10 minutes).

Hastie generally decides when the artwork is complete, and he nearly always must take the canvas away from her in order to prevent her from destroying it entirely. As she is very protective of her art (and will attempt to bite anyone interfering with it), ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/photos/dirk/2004/5.jpgphoto]} he must restrain her with one hand while retrieving the artwork with the other. Once he has taken it away, she often jumps several feet into the air in an attempt to retrieve it. Next, Hastie separates the transfer paper from the mat board to reveal the completed artwork. She is prolific, producing new work nearly every day.

Tillamook Cheddar's paintings are generally monochromatic, ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/work/images/Heat-Season.jpgview]} though some are polychromatic. ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/work/images/2006million_dollar_baby.jpgview]} In addition to showing lines created by her claws and teeth, some paintings are also characterized by paw prints. ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/work/images/LightExperiment1.jpgview]} [Herpaw prints only register when she is pressing down with her feet whilepulling the edge of the surface up with her mouth.] Often, her canvases have ripped corners and bite marks due to her use of her teeth. ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/work/images/2005rabbit_hole.jpgview]} She also uses her tongue on the surface, which creates colorfields that are subtle in comparison to the tooth and claw marks. Hastie explains that as a Jack Russell terrier--a breed developed for fox hunting--she has an instinct to dig, something she is not able to do easily or often in New York City, and thus her artwork provides her an outlet in this regard.

Reception of artwork

Tillamook Cheddar's work is well known in the art community of the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, where she has shown several times. Her paintings have been compared to those of Cy Twombly, ^{[http://www.new-york-art.com/cy-twombly-1-Untitled_1970.jpgphoto]} Jackson Pollock, ^{[http://www.physics.hku.hk/~tboyce/image_gifs/pollock.jpgphoto]} William Anastasi, ^{[http://www.artnet.com/artwork/424702177/161072/william-anastasi-subway-drawing-41606-robert-ryman-amy-sandback-merce-cunningham-bob-rauschenberg-jasper-johns.html photo]} and Willem de Kooning. Among the notable collectors of her work are the artists Wim Delvoye and Tom Sachs, and the art dealer Gian Enzo Sperone. She has earned nearly US$100,000 for her work. [ [http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/media/pages/NatPost2402.html National Post 2/4/02 ] ]

Negative criticism includes her being called a "sham" by Jerry Saltz of "The Village Voice". [ [http://www.theroyalgazette.com/siftology.royalgazette/Article/article.jsp?articleId=7d73db33003001a&sectionId=80 "Take a bow, Tillie"] , by Jessie Moniz, 27 March 2007, accessed 6 April 2007.]

Exhibitions

Since 1999, Tillamook Cheddar's work has been shown in galleries in the United States, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Bermuda. In addition to her 16 solo exhibitions, she has also been a part of 20 group and benefit exhibitions. Proceeds from several of her shows have been donated to the ASPCA and Brooklyn Animal Resource Coalition (BARC), and Hastie has donated several of her works to various benefit auctions.

In 2002, she collaborated with 26 human artists (including Ryan McGinness), for an art show entitled "Collarobations," held at the National Arts Club in New York City. [ [http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/shows/collar/index.html Collarobations ] ]

Since 2007, she has begun painting in public multi-media events called "Tillie Jazz," in collaboration with a live jazz trio (pianist Dred Scott, tenor saxophonist Bill McHenry, and drummer RJ Miller). ^{[http://youtube.com/watch?v=t1IVUuc1h0M video]} "Tillie Jazz" is scheduled to be featured on a segment of "CBS News Sunday Morning", scheduled to air on April 15, 2007, and a "Tillie Jazz" DVD is currently in production.

Books

In 2006, Hastie released "Portrait of the Dog as a Young Artist: Art from Scratch, By the World's Preeminent Canine Painter", a coffee table book containing photographs of Tillamook Cheddar and her artwork, and stories about her life. She is also profiled in "Talented Animals: A Chapter Book", published in 2003 by Mary Packard.

Media appearances

Tillamook Cheddar has appeared as a guest on several television programs, demonstrating her artistic technique. These have included "CNN Sunday Morning", with hosts Anderson Cooper and Catherine Callaway (September 29, 2002), [ [http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0209/29/sm.07.html CNN.com ] ] "Fox News Live" (November 19, 2002), "Good Day New York" (September 9, 2004), and "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" (November 30, 2006). On November 20, 2002 she appeared live on Japanese television via satellite hookup while executing a painting in New York, on Nippon Television's "Zoom In Super!!" program.

On May 11, 2002, she appeared with Hastie on NPR's "Studio 360" program. [ [http://www.studio360.org/yore/show051102.html Studio 360 This Week ] ]

Personal life

In addition to her artwork, Tillamook Cheddar also enjoys chasing squirrels, jumping, ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/photos/dirk/2000.html photos]} and playing catch with balls, which she often does at Brooklyn's Prospect Park. She also particularly enjoys food (especially meat and cheese), and her owner has said she likes to sample local cuisines during her travels. In July 2005 she gave birth to six puppies. ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/photos/dirk/pups.html photos]} One of her sons, named Doc (full name Doc Chinook Strongheart Cheddar), lives together with her and Hastie, and she enjoys playing with him.

Notes and references

Books

*F. Bowman Hastie III (2006). "Portrait of the Dog as a Young Artist: Art from Scratch, By the World's Preeminent Canine Painter". Seattle, Washington: Sasquatch Books. ISBN 978-1570614644
*Packard, Mary (2003). "Talented Animals: A Chapter Book". Children's Press. ISBN 0516229117.

Articles

*Szabo, Julia. "Picture this! Tillie's Artistic Talent Brings Her Star-Status." "New York Post", September 26, 2004. ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/media/pages/nypost2004.html read]}
*Ballo, Kate. "These Paintings Fetch Up to $2000 (And They were Painted By a Dog)." "The New York Dog", January 2006. ^{[http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/media/pages/ny_dog.html read]}

External links

* [http://www.tillamookcheddar.com/ Tillamook Cheddar official site]
* [http://celebritydogwatcher.com/?p=1517 Interview with Bowman Hastie about Tillamook Cheddar] (February 6, 2007)
* [http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/10/1021_021021_dogswithjobs2.html Article from National Geographic website] , by Sharon Guynup (2002)
* [http://www.magicpropagandamill.com/who/friends/tilla/tillwork/tillwork.html Art by Tillamook Cheddar]
* [http://www.bermudamasterworks.com/1/events/175?id=497fc50567e4391fb0b606dfb21a7faf Tillamook Cheddar art show in Bermuda]

Listening

* [http://www.studio360.org/yore/show051102.html Interview with Bowman Hastie and Tillamook Cheddar] , from "Studio 360", May 11, 2002 (segment "Tillie," produced by Jill Stoddard and Steve Nelson)
* [http://www.studio360.org/episodes/2006/12/01 "Studio 360"] , December 1, 2006 (brief mention in segment "Animal Artists," produced by Sean Cole)