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North London artist wins commission to paint Barbra Streisand's dog
The Jewish artist says that she grew up with the Evergreen singer's music
March 7, 2018 12:12
The Jewish artist says that she grew up with the Evergreen singer's music
March 7, 2018 12:12North London artist Cindy Lass has completed a once-in-a-lifetime commission to paint Barbra Streisand's late dog Samantha.
The mother-of-two, who has also painted the Queen’s corgis, said that she was more nervous about presenting her artwork to the singer than she was about painting for royalty.
“I grew up on her music. She has been such a major part of my life in terms of influencing me. I’m much more nervous about giving her the painting than I was the Queen.”
The opportunity to paint the Funny Girl star’s late dog arose at a Los Angeles party, when Cindy bumped into one of Ms Streisand's friends.
“We got talking and she told me that Barbra loved my paintings and wanted me to do one of her dog.
“I was so excited. Her friend sent me all these pictures of the dog and I also used Barbra’s Instagram for inspiration.
“My painting is quite childlike and has a certain naivety to it.”
Mrs Lass who has also been commissioned by celebrities such as Sir Elton John and George Michael, got into painting famous people's dogs after volunteering to do so for Battersea Dogs Home.
The 53-year-old dog-lover said: “There is something special about the relationship people have with their dogs.
“They know when you are down or happy, they pick up on things.”
Ms Streisand cloned her beloved Coton du Tulear before the dog died aged 14, last year.
The singer arranged for cells to be taken from the dog’s mouth and stomach and cultured into two clone "replicas" of the pooch.
The two dogs are now lively puppies called Miss Violet and Miss Scarlett.
“They have different personalities,” Ms Streisand told Variety. “I’m waiting for them to get older so I can see if they have her brown eyes and seriousness.”
While she was waiting for the two cloned pups to arrive, she found another dog, a distant relation of Samantha's and adopted that too, naming the animal "Miss Fanny".
Mrs Lass, has also launched her work as needlepoint kits so that people can stich her famous pieces.
She said: “The pace of the way we live is far too quick these days. No one sits down and relaxes, or concentrates on anything and I think that is really bad.
“I want people to get offline and enjoy something creative.”
