WILLIAMSBURG — In love with art since she was a little girl, Brianna Greth knew what she wanted to do from a very early age.
“I’ve been into art since I was a kid. It’s always been in the back of my mind and it’s always been my passion, so come time to look for college I decided to pursue art. After that, I took a little break but decided to pursue my masters in it. Art is just me and who I am,” Greth said.
After attending school for art, Greth wanted to combine her love for animals with her passion.
After a conversation with her mother, Greth created a piece for her mom of her two pups. That conversation sparked the idea to do pet portraits on the side.
“My mom wanted drawings of her dogs that we had owned back five or six years ago. I drew them with pen and ink. After drawing them, she wanted another portrait of her newest dog and that’s where things kind of took off,” Greth said.
Greth primarily created paintings for friends and family. After starting a job at Williamsburg Veterinary Clinic, she would often see the love that owners had for their animals. Wanting to find a way to express her creative side, she began offering portraits to clients.
“It started snowballing once people saw what I could do. It makes perfect sense and clients love their pets so much that they’d probably want a portrait of their fur baby so I combined both jobs into one,” Greth said.
Greth’s portraits combine oil painting and drawing, as well as digital painting.
A must for Greth is capturing the true essence and personality of any animal she takes on.
“I love capturing their likeness and their little quirks. I use a photo reference, but what comes out is always much more beautiful and unique. I love the process of capturing the little details about them so that their personality just comes out in the painting,” Greth said.
Her ultimate goal for her portrait creations is to turn it into a full-time job. She’d also love to book a spot at Second Sundays or the Williamsburg Farmers Market to show off what she can do.
In addition to pet portraits, Greth also loves pattern making, landscape portraits, and acrylic paintings.
Overall, Greth loves creating things that mean something to the people who buy her art. When it comes to inspiring future artists, Greth highly encourages any artist to just be themselves.
“Don’t worry about rules or guidelines when it comes to art. Do you and let your art come out the way it’s supposed to from your own mind,” Greth said.
To contact Greth for a portrait, email artbyjayne92@gmail.com.
