AKC Gazette Gallery: Show Dog Portraits by Edwin Megargee

Edwin Megargee was an AKC delegate, board member, and judge-but he is best remembered as a painting master who immortalized dozens of the 20th century’s top show dogs in painstaking detail. In the article “A Dog Artist at Work,” from the May 1926 AKC Gazette, Megargee described his technique for rendering portraits that are both accurate and artistic:
“How do I produce portraits of dogs? Well, I suppose you are thinking that I am more or less a human camera, that I set the dogs up in braces like the old tin-type man, and put an exact likeness on canvas, paper or copper plate. If you are thinking that, you are wrong.
“As a matter of fact, I seldom employ the same methods to get what I want. Once in a while, a dog will act natural and easy while I am doing his portrait, but more often I must catch fleeting glimpses of good poses.
“Sometimes I start with a dog by making five or six rough sketches of poses that he assumes while moving around. Eventually the pose I consider the most attractive is evolved. Then the polishing begins.
“Ordinarily I prefer to do dogs in their natural surrounding rather than in my studio. When at home they retain a certain amount of aplomb, no matter what takes place.
“Personality is the hardest thing to put on canvas, and unless the portrait shows the character of the subject, the artist has missed his biggest bet.”
From the collections of the American Kennel Club and the AKC Museum of the Dog:
Cover image: Clumber Spaniel Ch. Royaline White Foam (1944)
1. Smooth Fox Terrier Ch. Nornay Saddler (1940)
2. Standard Poodle Ch. Blakeen Eiger (1936)
3. Afghan Hound Ch. Rudiki of Prides Hill (1940)
4. Bedlington Terriers Ch. Lancelot of Rowanoaks and Ch. Taraleeds (c. 1941)
5. Collie (c. 1950s)
6. Harrier Ch. Mr. Reynal’s Monarch (1937)
7. Great Pyrenees Ch. Estat d’Argeles of Basquaerie and Ch. Estagel d’Argeles of Basquaerie (1930)
8. Smooth Fox Terrier Ch. Flornell Checkmate (1940)
9. Whippet Ch. Blue Goose of Meander (c. 1940)
10. Miniature Poodles Ch. Bonnie Brighteyes of Mannerhead and Blakeen, and Ch. Arnim of Piperscroft (1937)
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Published since 1889, the AKC Gazette is the American Kennel Club's official journal of news and information about dog breeds, raising and training dogs, and dog events. Enjoy the latest issue and browse 14 years of back issues free of charge at www.akc.org/products-services.... Search the entire archive of issues going back to 1889 via the AKC Digital Library: library.akc.org.