b'eArtist Kristen Baker and BuckyNature Always Wearsthe Colors of the SpiritThe cover of this issue of The New Barker was Digger. My pup was an albino Pekapoo namedcreated by artist Kristen Baker. Weve met her Punky, who happened to be Friskys mom.on several occasions during dog-centric events And, my brother Kevin had a Cocker Spanielat which she participated to showcase her named Buffy. Then there was MaxBuffywork. Quiet and polite, Kristen lets her art and Diggers offspringa bundle of energyspeak for her. Nature is her boundless muse, with the sweetest demeanor and the mostinspiring her to capture the essence of wildlife expressive eyes.and family pets in a diverse body of workToday, Bucky is my little shadow.from watercolor and acrylic paintings to I adopted him three years ago fromgraphite drawings and digital sketches.Compassion Kind Rescue. He is alwaysHere is Kristen, In the Artists Words. nearby while Im drawing or painting. NoA watercolor painting of our family dog, matter which room of the house Im workingMax, was my very first pet portrait 20 years in or how late in the evening, hes right hereago. Max was hit by a motorcycle during my with me.senior year of high school and I was absolutely One of the wonderful aspects of art is itsdevastated. The painting was a way for me to portability. Ive taken my art supplies to vari-honor him. ous places like the beach, the park, and nearlyGrowing up, my siblings and I were every room in our house. Recently, my partnerfortunate to be surrounded by a variety of and I bought an ambulance that were convert-animals in our household. We had dogs, cats, ing into a studio and camper, so soon myGuinea pigs, fish and turtles. Each of us kids studio will be truly mobile.had our own dog. My oldest sister, Amy, My go-to music genre is post-hardcore. Itcherished her black Pekapoo named Frisky; my helps me stay focused and energized through-sister Keri adored her Cocker Spaniel named out my creative sessions.50 THE NEW BARKER www.TheNewBarker.com'