ABOUT

Aimée has been painting professionally since 1999. Her work has been seen in numerous publications, featured on national television, and hangs in the collections of animal lovers all over the world, including best-selling authors, movie/TV producers, and celebrities.

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EARLY YEARS
Aimée’s first scribbles were of bears, horses and tigers. If it had four paws and fuzzy ears, it was in her sketchbook. Or preferably on her lap. Her deep love of animals, and early interest in drawing, only grew throughout young adulthood.

After earning a Bachelor’s degree in Art from California State Long Beach in 1992, Aimée continued to draw and paint on the side while she held down various day jobs. Although she sold the occasional landscape or figurative painting at local group art shows, early gallery feedback was consistent: she had talent, but was too “fickle” a painter. She was strongly encouraged to find a subject she liked enough to explore as an entire series. Or, as one gallery owner put it, “Find something that sticks in your craw.” At the time, Aimée knew that landscapes weren’t her artistic passion, but she wasn’t sure what was. So she kept painting.

But in 1999, Aimée finally returned to a subject that deeply interested her—animals—when she was asked to paint a portrait of a friend’s dog. The resulting painting lead to a successful 13 year career as a pet portrait artist, during which Aimée created over 130 custom paintings for clients all over the world. She even enjoyed a few TV appearances.

CURRENT WORK
In 2012, after a successful decade of painting mostly canines, Aimée decided it was time to grow as an artist and switch gears, subject-wise. Always inspired by photography, she began poking around on photo sharing sites for unusual animals:

I was originally looking for an animal called a takin, which is a cross between a goat and an antelope. I wanted to paint something completely different, something out of my pet portrait comfort zone, and a takin fit the bill. But while doing research on that animal, I came across this stunning photo of a goat, with a long, white beard. I instantly wanted to paint it and immediately emailed the owner of the image to ask for permission to use it. He turned out to be an award-winning photographer in Austria—and, surprisingly, was kind enough to say yes. In fact he was actually excited that I chose it, which made the process even more fun…

With the Goat portrait, a new Farm Animal series was born, as well as a new process for finding inspiration: for each new painting, Aimée might review over 40,000 reference photos before she lands on one image that clicks. She then reaches out to the photographer, typically making a new friend in the process.

Being a painter requires quite a bit of solo time in the studio, so it’s been a great way to connect with other artists in parts of the world I have not had a chance to visit. It feels like a mutually supportive creative community…

Aimée‘s intention with her current work is to elevate the animal’s importance by portraying them in more human/heroic portrait style, keeping a singular focus on the animal. Her hope is that she continues to work with talented photographers around the world, and that this series encourages others to look at animals—domesticated and otherwise—as the sensitive, sentient beings they are.

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When not in the studio, Aimée can be found devouring large stacks of shelter magazines and indulging her Nespresso addiction. She currently lives in Redondo Beach, California, with her husband, Scott, and their cat, Sesame.