Dialogues Murals | BZTAT Studios - Colorful and contemporary custom dog and cat portraits by animal artist BZTAT

Blogpaws West: Pets. Pet Lovers. Pet Art. What More Could You Want?

Sep 142010

BZTAT with her "Hand to Hand, Paw to Paw" Mural BlogPaws West 2010

When you have an experience as great as BlogPaws West 2010, it is impossible to put into words. I will say a few, then let the pictures tell the story.

I arrived a day early to Denver so I could get things prepared for painting the mural. I had mailed my supplies to the hotel in advance, however, they ended up arriving 3 days late! Luckily, there was a wonderful art supply store nearby. I ended up purchasing all new materials.

The mural image consisted of a dog and cat superimposed on a large heart for the background. Since the theme was about celebrating the worldwide community of pet lovers, it seemed an appropriate image.

The dog was a portrait of Lorenza, who was recently rescued and adopted in Canton, OH. The cat was a portrait of Mickey, whose human (a rescue volunteer) suddenly died recently, leaving her beloved pet without a home.

At the start of the conference, Mickey had no home. Conference attendees took up the charge for his plight, tweeting and retweeting for support.

When I arrived back home to Canton, I learned that Mickey had been adopted to a new loving family!

Creating the mural while interacting with some of the most interesting and inspiring people on earth was a treasure for me. I was deeply moved by the comments people wrote for the mural as well as the stories they shared during the process.

I thank Tom, Yvonne and Caroline, the BlogPaws founders, for allowing me to use their event as my studio for 3 wonderful days.

And I thank all the people who shared and contributed to the mural.

I will soon be receiving professional photographs of the mural, which I will share in this space. In the meantime, enjoy the slide show below to get a real taste of what BlogPaws was all about.

Would you like BZTAT to create a “Dialogues Mural” at your event? Read more here.

Life is an Adventure!

BZTAT

Check out my Referral Incentive Program! Send your friends here and you could get an ACEO by BZTAT!

Custom Pet Portraits / Contemporary Artwork of Cats, Dogs and other Animals

BZTAT Studios - In the heart of the Canton, OH Arts District

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Why BlogPaws is so Important to Me

Events and Happenings 12 Responses »

Sep 022010

This post originally appeared here on April 1, 2010. Since I am going to the second BlogPaws conference in Denver, CO next week, I wanted to share it again (with updated links). It is especially poignant for me since I will be speaking at and creating a mural at BlogPaws West.

When I was child, I was painfully shy. I am talking pathological anxiety, excruciating and terrified of people kind of shyness.

Even though I have been a mental health therapist for 19 years, I still do not know where the shyness came from. I do, however, know what saved me from it.

Animals.

Having family pets gave me friends of whom I was unafraid, and who showed me unconditional love. My pets also gave me something that I could talk about with people, alleviating some of my social anxieties.

I am 48 years old now, and I now feel fairly comfortable in most social situations. I even have found comfort in speaking in front of large groups. Even so, I still rely on my love of animals as one of my mainstay conversation topics.

So it is no wonder that I gravitated towards pet lovers when I stepped into the vast sea of social media.

Through my blogging cat Brewskie Butt, I have met hundreds of pet lovers from all over the world, and I have developed friendships that are very deep and meaningful through online interaction. I have even had the opportunity to meet some of these people face to face, enjoying a more full experience of our shared love of animals.

Next week, I will get the chance to meet many more of these people and other new friends at [BlogPaws West], the [second] ever pet blogging conference, being held in [Denver, CO]. I can’t wait!

I am looking forward to the event as an opportunity to expand my professional network as a pet portrait artist and blogger, and I am hoping to learn some new skills to enhance my online presence.

More than anything, though, I am looking forward to meeting people who share the love that I have of animals on a personal as well as professional level. And, I am looking forward to meeting some of their pets also, because many people will be bringing their animals with them to the conference!

Robert Brault said, “The difference between friends and pets is that friends we allow into our company, pets we allow into our solitude.”

I believe this to be true. We allow pets into a very special place in our hearts that is unguarded and unfettered. Friends who understand this best are the ones I most want to allow in my company.

So you see, painting pets is more than just a niche art style for me. It is something that connects me to the world from a place deep within my soul.

And that is why meeting up with fellow pet lovers at BlogPaws is so important to me.

I hope to see YOU at BlogPaws!

Life is an Adventure!

BZTAT

Check out my Referral Incentive Program! Send your friends here and you could get an ACEO by BZTAT!

Custom Pet Portraits / Contemporary Artwork of Cats, Dogs and other Animals

BZTAT Studios - In the heart of the Canton, OH Arts District

I Need an Image of an Adoptable Cat for My BlogPaws Mural.

Murals No Responses »

Aug 312010

Digital Art by BZTAT

Can you help me out?

I want to use a dog and cat image for the mural that I will be creating at BlogPaws West.

Last night, I was going through zillions of photos of critters to use as reference images for the mural.

Then someone posted this sweet pup named Lorenza on my Facebook wall.

I thought, “She’s Perfect!”

Lorenza was found in Canton, OH and is looking for a home. The person who found her volunteers with Second Chance For Animals, and she has offered to pay the adoption fee for anyone who is one of my Facebook Fans.