Your dog is probably your hiking buddy, camping cohort, maybe even your paddle boarding pal. Have you ever considered capturing these moments on film? Ashley English, photographer with Coop & You Photography (coopandyou.photography), specializes in shooting outdoorsy, action-type shots. “Those are the moments that are really special to capture,” says English, who moved to Sacramento from Southern California this past August with her husband and two dogs, Cooper and Fidus. Coop & You is named after Cooper, who was English’s muse for starting the business. “I became obsessed with taking pictures of her . . . and I thought, ‘Maybe I’d like to do this.’” English also photographs cats, rabbits, hamsters—any animal is photo worthy in her eyes. She also can turn one of your photos into minimalist digital art.
Fans of Andy Warhol and pop art will want to check out the work of local artist Dawn Pedersen. “I put more ornamentation in, but I am influenced by pop art and Andy Warhol’s choice of colors,” says Dawn Pedersen (dawnpedersen.com), whose work has been displayed at Crocker Art Museum and Fe Gallery. She sells prints of her commission paintings, and her collection of Candy-Colored Pop Art Animal Paintings is worth perusing for the titles alone. A couple of standouts: Bubba’s Gonna Need to Try Your Chicken Again to Make Sure It’s Safe for You to Eat and Onyx Tells You Your Future But Sometimes He Lies. “I’m trying to get into the mind of the animal. ‘If this animal were a human with this look on their face, what might they be thinking?’” says Pedersen, who herself has a “pandemic kitten” and two loaded fish tanks. She works exclusively from photos and can create using watercolor, acrylic, oil or ink. She also makes calendars, ornaments and button pins.
