Readers can catch Leelanau artist Kat Dakota’s artwork on the cover of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association’s (JAVMA) this month. The American Veterinary Medical Association is one of the nation’s leading advocates for veterinary care and medical advancement with distribution around the country.
Dakota, a commercial and fine artist who specializes in oil painting, had one of her completed pet portraits, a commission from one of her customers, selected to be used on the August issue. The portrait depicting a dog named Nora looking up with adoring blue eyes was something Dakota made for her customer, Jennifer, however, another customer, Julie, originally suggested she submit her work for the JAVMA cover. While Dakota thought it was a longshot to be chosen, she submitted her work to the association anyway in hopes that someone would eventually contact her.
“I thought it was a great idea on Julie’s part (to submit art), but I also thought it was a far shot because there’s a lot of incredible artists across the nation that’ll submit their artwork to be on the cover,” Dakota said. “They (JAVMA) contacted me in February… I was totally excited, and I had decided to keep it a secret until I received copies of the issue, so I knew for seven months.”
