Dan’s Papers Cover Artist Carol Luz on Her Adventurous Dogs

Dan’s Papers readers are very familiar with artist Carol Luz and her famous dogs, Judy and Elroy. This week, Judy and Elroy visit a cottage in Quogue, while Luz discusses the inspiration for the piece, how she creates her whimsical art and more.

What was the inspiration for this piece?
The inspiration for my piece, “Meeting the Neighbors,” was Norman Rockwell’s art-directed photograph for Kodak, “Closing a Summer Cottage” shot by Ralph Amdursky and Charles Baker in Quogue in 1957. I used to always ride my bike past this house on my way to the beach. I always loved this house. I’m glad to see it is still there. This is a real “summer cottage.” I had to add my dogs, Judy and Elroy, meeting a little bulldog.

Talk about your art style.
I would say my art style is whimsical. It is fun, lighthearted and wants to evoke happiness from the viewer.

Tell us about your artistic process.
My artistic process is working from photos that I put together like a puzzle. Some photos I take and some photos I find online. With this painting, I found the house and Volkswagen Beetle online. I photographed the dogs myself and then added all of the photos together.

If you weren’t an artist what would you be doing?
If I weren’t an artist I would probably be regretting that I wasn’t an artist. I really don’t know. It would have to be something creative. I wanted to be a fashion designer in high school. My art teacher talked me out of it. Imagine if I went that route—I could’ve been a major fashion designer! I’ll never know!

What inspires you the most?
My two Jack Russell Terriers, Judy and Elroy, inspire me the most. They are from the same litter. We named them after the brother and sister from The Jetsons. I love putting them in different, unexpected scenarios and having a fun time. They are such characters. It’s fun to capture that in my paintings.

See more of Carol Luz’s work at carolluzart.com, on Instagram @judyandelroy and at Mustique at Hampton House in Westhampton Beach.

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