We often say our cows are just like big dogs (with horns), and that is especially true for Clementine. Our red highland girl is very social. She is always the first one to greet us in the morning, sashaying towards us with her tail wagging behind her. Sometimes she licks our arms and hands, gifting us with slobbery kisses with her coarse tongue. After plenty of love, she stops letting us know it's time to brush her luxurious red coat. She loves grooming time. When the brush touches her hair, she stops whatever she is doing so she can fully enjoy every moment. Her sweet energy shows through as she interacts with her younger sisters, Annabelle and Adelaide, our two smaller cows. She licks Annabelle’s ears to show her love and playful headbuts them while minding her large horns. While she may have a fiery red coat, her personality is far more sweet than spicy.
*Available in 4 sizes: 12x12, 24x24, 40x40 and 48x48
*2 week production time
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*All Portraits are custom orders, No Returns or Exchanges
Val Shaff - Artist Statement
The Animal portraits of Patina Farm
My sepia toned, environmental portraits of farm animals are as warm and soft as their subjects. I hope to create a connection for the viewer with a sense of the individual spirit of the subject.
I made these photographs exclusively for Patina Farm. When I am in the field with my subjects all of my senses are happy so close to the earth. Smelling the smells, hearing the sounds, I grow very quiet and move slowly . I make my job a bit easier by photographing animals who are living in loving environments and not being farmed industrially. I believe that if I can get my subject to be engaged with me that what will be revealed is an essential aspect of their character and personality.
For the sepia toned environmental work I look for timeless environments that do not refer to the presence of people . I want to feel a sense of the primordial world inhabited by the others.
When I am photographing in the field I work with good old fashion film. I like working slowly and picking my moments carefully. The marriage of analog and digital gives me the best of both worlds.
When I photograph against black ground, I am working with high digital technology . My medium format Hasselblad digital camera sees things more sharply than I do. These images refer to the paintings of the Dutch Masters . I like to think that I am creating small masterpieces by simply doing justice to the likeness of my subjects. In response to my love of painting, I print on the finest canvas available for digital printing and it is done by a small family owned company in the United States. This medium allows the subject to imbue a space with a presence that I find otherwise obscured by glass .
My animal portraits are made with the hope that living with animal iconography is uplifting . It fills our homes with characters that express innocence , authenticity , humor , nobility , mystery, steadfastness ; In short the animals express and affirm our own values . We are all connected as we share the ground beneath our feet .
