Painter captures animals on canvas

CENTRALIA — For Centralia artist Dee Dee Murry, putting her signature on a painting is the hardest part.

"You can ruin the look of the whole thing with an ugly signature," she said recently with a bit of a grimace.

But these days, Murry's signature on a painting means you're getting the work of an accomplished, award-winning artist. But you won't find portraits of people on her easel. You will find paintings of horses, birds, dogs, cats and wildlife of all sorts.

"People are not my thing," she chuckled. "It's a whole different technique painting hair and feathers, rather than skin."

It's a technique that has garnered Murry several awards, the most recent being for the painting "Great Gray Hunter," which won first place in the wildlife category out of 1,600 entries in an annual competition in The Artist's Magazine. The owl painting is featured in the magazine's December issue, along with information about the artist.

"This has been an amazing year for wins," she said. Her painting "Splash Dance" won the "Horses in Art" competition and is featured on the cover of its summer 2008 issue, and Andalusian magazine features Murry's painting "All Would Envy" on the cover of its International Andalusian and Lusitano Horse Association national-show issue.

Murry has also won the people's-choice award at Emerald Downs, and the same owl painting that's featured in The Artist's Magazine won Best of Show out of 700 entries at the Puyallup Fair. She also has entered the federal government's duck-stamp competition and been a finalist twice.

"I was tenth out of 270," she said, adding with a laugh, "I figure if those nine other people hadn't been born I'd be a millionaire."

Quirky sense of humor aside, Murry said she always has loved animals and been artistic. It was that combination that led her to sell her first painting while she was in middle school for a whopping $40.

Because she loves animals so much, Murry thought about becoming a veterinarian.

"I started vet school, but I'd cry every time a chick would die," she explained. "It was not for me."

The experience did give her an opportunity to study animal anatomy, which she said has only helped her paintings look more realistic.

These days Murry, 48, runs a computer business out of her home, and spends about three or four hours at the end of every day in her upstairs studio. Settled into the crook of her left arm, head dangling over Murry's shoulder, you'll also find 8-year-old Hallie, Murry's beloved long-haired dachshund and constant companion. Photographs, pencil drawings and paintings of Hallie, and Murry's previous dog, Jessie, hang on walls.

Easily understanding people's affection for their animals, Murry quite often does commissioned paintings of pets, working from photographs. Murry's originals also come from photos she's taken, since it's hard to get an animal to pose. A recent trip to a Montana ranch gave her a chance to photograph exotic animals used by Hollywood trainers. She said she looks forward to painting them and adding her own touches.

"It's really fun to put your own thing into it, like adding dramatic light," she said.

Because her work is very detailed, Murry said it can sometimes become tedious, but then there are the wonderful moments that make it worthwhile.

"When it gets to the point when it starts to look real ... that's the best," she said. "I'm a detail freak — but it seems like for commissions, people look for detail."

While Murry said she still struggles with her signature, she does tuck a special something into her pieces, although she can't really remember how it started.

"I always hide a little 'o' in each painting," she said.

If her commissioned works are her bread and butter, then Murry's original works are like the jam.

"I have so many wonderful photos to paint," she reflected. "I want to have the time to get to paint, [to build a collection] to get into galleries."