Monday 27 May 2013

A Year in the Life of Karen Moe Photography Part 3


The Cotons

And then there are the Cotons. Oh my! Jewela on the left; Fatiana on the right; and check out Prince Kintana all cozied up in the middle! Coton de Tulears are exquisite creatures: both beautifully natured and beautiful to look at. Their sweet, playful personalities and ravishing good looks are also complemented by an exotic heritage: they are the Imperial Dog of Madagascar and were brought to France during the infamous Age of Imperialism. Despite a splattering of brutality in their history, those French sure do have good taste!



I have had the honour of photographing Lorna Christie’s “White Pearl Cotons” twice. “Coton Pool Party” (above) was taken on a sparkling spring day in the dogs’ beautiful yard in White Rock BC. As soon as I saw the princess pool, I knew that the three Cotons were meant to be photographed in it. Luxurious hair rigorously brushed to perfection, fountain-tailed and chocolate-brown-almond-eyes shining, the sweetest faces crowned with tasteful bows, these dogs are so darn elegant that they trump any Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty! Move over Disney! Here are ‘The Cotons’!!

"Prince Kintana"

One day, Fatiana, Jewela and Kintana visited my studio. The morning of their visit, I put a sign in the building elevator inviting anyone to come by and meet the most beautiful dogs in the world. Three of my friends and neighbours came. One young woman, a textile designer, sat on the floor stroking Kintana and murmured with a mixture of emphasis and disbelief, “You are the most exquisite creature I have ever met...”

"Jewela & Fatiana"

Some people snub their noses at pure breds, show dogs, dogs that have been bred for centuries to achieve a certain temperament and physical appearance, dogs who are bought and sold for thousands of dollars. But, as a visual artist, and a worshipper of Beauty, I have no problem with perfection. The Cotons entered my frame as aesthetic gifts, as sculptures. Exhilarated, I constructed idealized settings and backgrounds, enacting the balance of rococo, sentimentality, romance, committing every post- modern crime. “How can any creature be so perfect?” these portraits ask. Well, they can. Look. Perfection exists.

“Coton Party”
Jewela, Fatiana and Kintana are definitely a party ... a festival in fact! Posed to perfection in front of bright spring daisies, sit three laughing Cotons in a row, girl and boy bowed, flossy hair swishing and swooping in the wind. Princess Jewela is tossing her head back in uproarious (well, delicately uproarious ... they are exquisite Cotons after all) laughter; Kintana is just a down-to-earth jovial kinda really cute guy; and sweet, demure Fatiana smiles shyly at the end.




What can be happier? How can one not smile when in the company of such adorable and adoring fun? When Lorna Christie parades her three Cotons along the White Rock Beach Promenade, she definitely turns heads. Children come running, delighted, squealing, like they are on the brink of a fairyland. They want to touch, snuggle, snuffle, and hug. How can anything so cute be real? “Mommy can I please kiss the fairy-tale?”

Ok, all of you big dog (or Dog-Dog) people are probably feeling a bit green at the “that’s not a Dog” gills. And I apologize. But I can’t help it! They are just so unbelievably cute! And they have fabulous personalities too! And, look how obedient they are, sitting there, impeccably back- grounded by yellow daisies: 3 laughing Cotons in a row.


1 comment:

  1. Hey, I couldn’t find your email. Can you email me so that I can ask you a question?
    –Shaye
    shayewalsh1@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete