Nostalgia, Old-World Technique, and Pet Portraits: An Artist Finds Her Sweet Spot—and Acclaim
UK-based artist Alison Friend has something of a cult following. Her paintings, which apply Old Master technique to almost caricature-like portraits of animal characters, evoke a deep response, part nostalgia, part recognition of how we anthropomorphize our own pets. When she posts her work on Instagram, her paintings, say of a cat in a puffy vest or a dog eating a slice of pizza, get upwards of 100,000 likes.
“I’ve been told many times there’s a warmth and nostalgia to my paintings, says Friend. “For me, they evoke memories of my childhood.”
Her father, who used to paint birds and racehorses as a hobby, was “a big animal lover and he passed that on to me—I remember wanting to be just like him,” she says. Some of her paintings feature interiors from her childhood—or rather, memories of interiors from her childhood.
“I think the nostalgia plays a big part,” she says. “Also, we love to think the animals in our lives have human emotions and my work definitely plays on that idea.”
Friend’s distinctive style was developed over the years of painting and drawing as a profession, working in greeting cards and children’s books. But it wasn’t until Covid and lockdown that she started experimenting with the technique that has become her signature.
“Animals set against old-fashioned interiors is something that I’ve kept going back to for a long time. [But] since starting to paint in oils just before lockdown, I feel I am achieving the look and feel for these paintings I have always imagined.”
“It’s a fine line to get them just right,” she continues. “The rendering of them in oil paint and the colour palette I use is very traditional and steers them just far enough from being too cartoon and makes them still believable as real characters…I hope!”
At times, the paintings threaten to take over her home.
“I work in my kitchen from my small apartment in the Lake District. There are times close to a show where my son is eating his breakfast completely surrounded by animal faces—all giving him the side eye,” she laughs.
Felines rank close to the top of her favourite characters. “Some of the cats I have painted are high up on my list…My cats always look like they’re very serious even when they’re wearing a trucker hat or a motorcycle helmet.”
Fans stay tuned: Friend hints that a coffee table book may be in the works. In the meantime, visit alisonfriend.com for more.
This article originally appeared in the award-winning Modern Cat magazine. Subscribe today!
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