Artists and their Pets

Celebrated Spanish artist Pablo Picasso was an avid animal-lover and owned a small menagerie. His personal favorite was a dachshund named Lump, which means “rascal” in German. Picasso preferred to work in solitude and Lump was the only creature allowed into his studio. Remarked Picasso about Lump, “He’s not a dog, he’s not a little man, he’s somebody else”.

American Pop artist Andy Warhol and Archie, his dachshund, were inseparable. Archie often accompanied Warhol to his studio, art openings and restaurants. Warhol referred to Archie as his “alter ego” and would often deflect interviewer’s questions towards the dog if he didn’t want to answer.

British painter, print maker and photographer David Hockney was the human slave of two well-loved dachshunds, Stanley and Boodgie. The pair were immortalized in an exhibition entitled, “Dog Days” which featured 45 paintings of the pups. A reviewer of the exhibition declared, “Only the owner could have painted that”, pointing to the intimacy and love evident in the portraits.

What’s cooking?

Explore artist Georgia O’Keeffe’s other palette from The Art Assignment: PBS Digital Studios.

Georgia’s Chocolate and Walnut Brownie:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan

• 4 oz semisweet dark chocolate

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 2 cups walnuts, chopped

• 2 eggs

• 2/3 cup sugar

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 375F. Grease an 8 by 8–inch baking pan, line it with parchment paper, then grease the parchment. In a double boiler, gently melt the butter and chocolate together and set aside to cool.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and walnuts.

Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs, sugar, and vanilla for 2–3 minutes, or until lightened. When the chocolate mixture is cool enough to avoid cooking the eggs, add the egg/sugar mixture; whisk well to combine. Stir in the flour mixture just until incorporated.

Pour the batter into the baking pan and bake for 20–25 minutes, or just until a knife or tester inserted in the center comes out clean.