My name is Leigh Jackson. As a dog portrait artist, I usually paint dogs who are greatly loved. I wish all dogs were so treasured. However, there are millions of dogs waiting at shelters for a family who would love them enough to have me paint their portrait.
The majority of dogs languishing
in shelters are labeled as pit bull type dogs. Brought to the shelter due to breeding, abandonment, and/or abuse, they face extreme discrimination based upon appearance, not behavior.
Although pit bulls score better than 121 other breeds on temperament tests, propaganda has branded them as vicious, dangerous dogs. Breed specific discrimination laws are enacted, people are afraid to adopt them, and insurance policies do not allow for them.
Until all dogs are treated as individuals, the myths and politics surrounding pit bulls result in shelters having to kill happy, healthy, and perfectly adoptable dogs.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Weisel wrote about the power of bearing witness to history. "For the dead and the living, we must bear witness," he wrote. " To forget would be not only be dangerous but offensive: to forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time ."
I choose to bear witness for the all pit bulls who did not make it out of the shelters. They are more than a number or a statistic. I paint their portraits to put a face on this shame. I will be painting at least one portrait a week for the year.
These portraits are based on photographs taken in 2011 by Josh Liddy and J.J. Woofin' Paws. These are not all the pit bulls euthanized in 2011. This is not a scientific study or exclusive to the shelters mentioned. These dogs and their portraits represent the millions killed every year at all shelters.
It is emotionally challenging to create these paintings. It is not easy to look at their faces, but I ask you please do not look away. Bear witness. Remember these dogs.
