But then there are moments that make this business worthwhile. One client wanted a painting of her daughter's dear departed rat "Merlin". Unfortunately she didn't have a photograph so she described what he looked like as well as some of his quirky little personality traits. I used a picture of a hooded rat as a reference and when I delivered the completed artwork she exclaimed "But that's exactly what he looked like!" Then there was another woman who had a prize-winning photograph of her gorgeous chocolate box tabby and white Persian kitten Whiskers. She wanted the whole photo reproduced, right down to the grain of the wooden table the cat was sitting on. When she saw the finished painting she cried (and in a good way!). Finally there was "Cindy the Pug" a memorial to a much loved pet who had passed away. The lady who commissioned it one day found her husband talking to the painting. When she asked him what he was doing he replied, "It's ok, I'm just talking to Cindy". Those are the moments that inspire you to continue picking up your paintbrush to try and capture a memory.
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