15 Amazing Pet Portrait Artists on Instagram
With Small Business Saturday coming up, I wanted to take the time to feature some of my favorite pet portrait artists. Each artist featured in this blog is a female entrepreneur that owns and runs a business selling her creations. This year has been especially hard on small businesses and I encourage you to shop small when possible this holiday season.
Animal Art by Allison & Tobs
Image courtesy of: @taylormayxo
I was first introduced to Ms. Thompson’s art through a friend on Instagram. Once I viewed her wood slab paintings, I knew I had to commission one of Jasper. Offering everything from ornaments to canvas art, this small business has something for everyone. Don’t have a pet of your own? Pet portrait ornaments make a wonderful holiday or remembrance gift for friends and family.
Medium: Ink / Colored Pencil / Paint
Price Range: $45+
Instagram: atobslife
Bryant Has a Pencil
Reference Photo: @helloitsjasper
I first stumbled upon Bryant Has a Pencil while browsing TikTok. Quickly, I became enrapture with Ms. Gina’s digital drawing videos. If you browse her Instagram profile, you will see numerous black and white digital drawings that display her talent. She is not only a talented artist, but she is incredibly kind to boot! Ms. Gina provides a wonderful experience for her customers and I definitely recommend purchasing artwork from this business.
Medium: Digital
Price Range: $25
“Drawing to fight eating temptations… while capturing a moment in time of your loved ones.” – Gina
Instagram: bryanthasapencil
Doggywood Art by Carly Weaver
If you know me, then you’re aware that I’m an absolute sucker for art on wood. Obviously, Ms. Weaver’s business is right up my alley. With a striking attention to detail, Ms. Weaver truly captures her client’s furry friends. I always feel that I can see the animal’s personality in her work (which I love). Not to mention, she is based in Austin, Texas!
Medium: Color Pencil / Oil Painting
Price Range: $220-550
“Unique realistic portrait drawings on wood.” – Carly Weaver
Instagram: doggywoodart
Kathyphantastic Watercolor Illustration and Pet Portraits
Image courtesy of: @sirbentley.thedood 
Image courtesy of: @princessbuttercupdumptruck
One of my favorite Austin, Texas artists to date! I first met Ms. Phan in early 2019 and was enraptured by her work. Watercolor portraits with beautiful and unique color palettes are her specialty. Creating everything from stickers to cards, you’re bound to find something you love in her collection. Even better, Ms. Phan occasionally offers a variety of virtual painting courses. Make sure to follow her on Instagram for information on when these courses are taking place.
Medium: Watercolor
Price Range: $199 and up (Watercolor Pet Portraits) / $65-75 (Coffee and Beer Mugs)
“Kathy Phan is a watercolor pet portrait, illustration, and lettering artist based in Austin, Texas. Kathy paints fun food and colorful animals for her kathyphantastic line of products including stationery, stickers, magnets, and home goods.” – Kathy Phan
Instagram: shopkathyphantastic
Little Felted Friends
Image courtesy of: @wembley_thegolden 
Image courtesy of: @hergiantlove
What’s better than one cute doggo? One + a half! Ms. Gurney’s miniature felt replicas are adorable additions to anyone’s family. Display your felt friend at home for an eye-catching conversation starter or bring it on vacation (Perfect for when your best pal can’t come). An incredible amount of detail goes into each felted animal (there’s even a mini heart inside each). One of my friends even memorialized her dog’s likeness with a felted friend. I highly recommend following Ms. Gurney on Instagram and/or TikTok if you would like to see time lapses of her artistic process.
Medium: Wool + needle (Needle felting)
Price Range: $80 / pet
“Owners love remembering the good times they’ve had with their pets, whether that’s taking selfies together or even buying a miniature felt version of them as I’ve found out! Sitting at approximately 3 inches tall, each LFF is needle felted with 100% wool and hand painted glass eyes. A tiny heart is even felted inside! Great amount of detail is accounted for—down to the paw pads. Depending on the coat length and markings, one Little Felted Friend can take up to 4 hours to craft.” -Alyson Gurney
Instagram: littlefeltedfriends
Mexicanines Art
Recognize this art piece? Meet the artist, Danny, who illustrated our blog’s logo! Not to worry, Danny offers non-commercial artwork as well. Take a peak at her Instagram and you’ll see that she has a wide range of art styles available (headshots and flat illustrations to mention a few). She was professional, timely and worked hard to ensure my vision was brought to light. I highly recommend her services!
Medium: Digital
Price Range: $40-300
“I would describe my brand as custom pet art that incorporates a fun cartoony style from a dog nerd perspective.” – Danny
Instagram: mexicanines
Pawfect Paintings
Image courtesy of: @lifeofzoeythebear 
Image courtesy of: @pudnuckers
I am a long time follower of Ms. Fisher’s work. Watching her website catalogue expand over the years has been a joy. Some of my favorite items are her hand painted jewelry and stockings. If you aren’t looking to purchase a custom art piece of your pet, make sure to check out her book! Each page of What Night Brings, A Children’s Book for Dreamers is hand illustrated and written by Ms. Fisher.
Medium: Digital / Glass Ornaments / Oil / Watercolor / Pen and Ink / Linen Stockings
Price Range: $25 – Unlimited (Custom Projects)
“Pawfect Paintings is a shop for modern dog lovers that features hand painted pet portraits on a variety of mediums by professional artist, Jacqueline Fisher. Each piece is carefully created and customized to be timeless, modern, simple and true to your pets likeness.” – Jacqueline Fisher
Instagram: pawfectpaintings
Pawprints by Nina
I’ve always been impressed with the wide variety of products Ms. Lutz offers. She has everything from caricatures to puzzles. My personal favorite item? Custom coloring pages! After hearing my friends rave about the products they commissioned from Ms. Lutz, I know I’m excited to place our first order.
Medium: Pen and Ink / Colored Pencil / Digital
Price Range: $20-250
“My work is meant to be fun, cute, and happy- capturing what you love most about your pet!” – Nina Lutz
Instagram: pawprintsbynina
Sarah Paints Pets
Image courtesy of: @focusdesignsandphotos 
Image courtesy of: @isabella_labdoodle 
Image courtesy of: @atoastypug
As a Georgia girl myself, I discovered Ms. Miller’s artwork through the good ole Georgia grapevine. Having followed her on my personal Instagram account since 2017, I’ve been able to watch her brand grow and evolve. She is always coming up with new and unique ways to offer pet portraits (I mean, look at that adorable cocktail menu). Don’t have a pet yourself? You can purchase a gift card on her website to gift for the holidays!
Medium: Watercolor (With Fine Pen Outline)
Price Range: $35-265
Instagram: sarahpaintspets
“My brand is very personal and about adding a happy spot to your home to celebrate your love for your pet. I strive to paint every pet as if it were my own.” – Sarah Miller
Sheila Chen Art
As an Army wife, I love supporting fellow military spouses. One of my absolute favorite artists, Sheila Chen, just so happens to be a military wife! Currently based out of Hawaii, Mrs. Chen offers a wide variety of pet art. Personally, my favorite piece that we own is the ‘impawsto’ painting she created of Jasper (Image on the left). I’ve always been more than pleased with her turnaround time for purchases (for both digital and physical art) and she makes the process as simple as possible for the customer. I highly recommend browsing her Instagram or joining one of her YouTube live drawing sessions, they are an absolute blast!
Medium: Inks / Digital / Acrylics / Watercolor / Pastels / Oils (New mediums are always being added)
Price Range: $25-$3000+
“My brand is fun, classy, and based on community over competition! Through photo contest giveaways, YouTube live group art, and my refurral pack, my biz is all about celebrating our fur babies in every way we can.” -Sheila Chen
Instagram: sheilachenart
Skyrannosaurus Art
I met Ms. Skylar through her beloved pug, Petunia. When I found out about her business and viewed her work, I knew I had to purchase a commission. My ideas are always a bit extra (I mean, who wouldn’t want Jasper in a Mickey hat?), but she is incredibly accommodating. Ontop of that, she is a delight to work with and her communication throughout the process is superb. I could not be happier with our portrait purchases from Ms. Skylar and, as a customer, I highly recommend her work.
Medium: Watercolor / Acrylic / Graphite / Pen / Ink
Price Range: $25-$200+
“I love to paint people’s pets because I know how much animals mean to people. There’s nothing better than bringing a smile to someone who commissions your one of a kind artwork.” – Skylar
Instagram: skyrannosaurusart
Stellar Villa Wall Art & Decor
As soon as I came across Ms. Laura’s artwork, I was inspired. Her images tell a story and hold an incredible depth to them. I’m not going to lie, I’ve become a major fangirl for her creations. She not only offers custom art, but she also has a gallery of pre-drawn prints available for purchase. I can’t wait to design a space in our home that includes her work (and yes, I love it to the point of centering a room around it).
Medium: Digital / Illustration / Ink / Paint
Price Range: $35-55 (Prints) / $85-250 (Custom Art)
“Stellar Villa is a wall art décor company that specializes in providing stylish, minimalistic and unique wall art pieces. My mission is to provide you with story-telling & attention grabbing wall art, so you can create a space you truly love.” – Laura
Instagram: iamlaurael
Stitching Sabbatical
The first time I viewed Ms. Staub’s hand embroidered pet portraits, I was in awe. Each portrait is incredibly realistic and pops beautifully on a fabric background. I am amazed by her talent and ability to capture animals with thread. I can’t wait to eventually order from her. If you are interested in Ms. Staub’s work, I recommend viewing her website or Instagram for more examples.
Medium: Embroidery Thread on Cotton Fabric (Hand embroidery)
Price Range: $85-1900 (Standard Detail Portraits Start at $950)
“Stitching Sabbatical takes a photo of your pet and lovingly hand stitches it into a work of art.” – Michelle Staub
Instagram: stitchingsabbatical
The Drawing Duke
If you watch our YouTube channel (Subscribe here) or follow us on Instagram, you may recognize the artwork above. When I tell you Ms. Duke brought my vision to life, I mean it! She worked hard to curate the perfect art pieces while making sure that we felt included and informed throughout the entire process. Everything from poses to the background color was covered during our discussions. Ms. Duke is an incredibly talented artist and I highly recommend commissioning artwork from her.
Medium: Digital
Price Range: $50+ (Small Sketch Commissions) / $200+ (Larger Projects)
“I would describe my brand as ‘spoopy eclectic.’ I imagine my work as a flea market piled high with miscellaneous styles and inspirations. Haunted by some amicable ghosts, of course.” – Beka Duke
Instagram: thedrawingduke
Tiny Framed Things by Elisa Wikey
Image courtesy of: @freddypickles 
Image courtesy of: @_let_me_be_frank_ 
Image courtesy of: @thewildflowerpack
Having lived in Texas, I’m all for supporting a local Austin Artist. When my friend first introduced me to Ms. Wikey’s art, I was head-over-heels. Not only is her art adorable, but it is teeny-tiny. Obviously, I cannot resist with a combination like that! I mean, who wouldn’t want a half inch pupper to display?
Medium: Digital / Acrylic / Ballpoint Pen
Price Range: $15-40
“Tiny Framed Things are best described as the tiniest and framiest of all the things. Purveyor of half inch art that’s unbelievably charming.” – Elisa Wikey
Instagram: elisawikeydrawsthings
Have an artist you love on Instagram? Recommend them in the comments down below! (We may feature them in a future blog)
Reminder: Black Friday & Small Business Saturday are this week. Check Instagram as many of these artists are offering limited time sale prices!
