Why Us?
The following is a question and answer session between myself. As you’ll see, I wasn’t afraid to ask the tough questions.
Q. Why Cat and Dog Modern?
A. Why should cat and dog art just sit there, with subject matter that just sits there? We create cat and dog art that's more engaging, which is what a culture of caring is all about. After all, a caring staff engages pet parents with warmth, empathy and humor, right? Cat and dog art should do the same.
In other words, bland walls and blank walls won’t take your culture of caring wall to wall, which is Cat and Dog Modern's themeline. Considering how short-staffed clinics are today, art communicating positive engagement has never been so important.
Q. So what qualifies you to cleverly and vividly translate a culture of caring into art?
A. Besides spending a lifetime with cats and dogs, I spent several decades crafting strategy-driven marketing solutions for clients in advertising, eventually rising to Creative Director at San Francisco’s J. Walter Thompson. Retiring from the business in the early 2000’s gave me a chance to pursue art and design full time, but I never forgot the importance of a strategic focus in decision making.
Every ”pet project" is based on some situational or behavioral cat or dog truth that’s meant to tug at the heartstrings or maybe the corners of a smile. One of our cats sleeps in the sink. Another snoozes on the stereo. One manages merging into a laptop. Go figure! We’ve got a Husky in bed singing into a set of retro mic's. There's a dog that’s a Corgi on one end and a Dachshund on the other. You can buy five extensions and run our Corghund around corners…or the whole office if you like.
Want a big ol’ hound with squared-off shoulders? Try an Unround Hound. How about two Golden Retrievers with their front legs stretched out and their tales arched in a heart? There’s even an over-sized red ball so large that it’s apparently caught a very small mutt…we call it “Ball Catches Dog”. Oh, and I’ve “Corrected” several Dalmatians, after years of trial and error. No more random polka dots for you!
Q. Those visual ideas do sound different. Are they a little too different? Combined with the modernism?
A. Modernism can be a scary word, but there are lots of different kinds. For our sake, let’s divide the word into two camps - “recognizable modernism” and “abstract". I’m definitely in the recognizable camp. Contemporary, not crazy.
Just like architecture finally evolved from copying Roman columns and temples, which went on into the early 1900’s by the way, I felt cat and dog art needed to evolve beyond the sameness of photographic representation or cartoonish and juvenile illustration.
We’re different because we have a concept AND a modern graphic stylishness to each artwork. So clinics get a thoroughly contemporary cat at the door, a cat at the window, cats on the prowl, for example. A cat peeking through a passageway, a dog wearing a cone…or a pup sleeping under the sun in “Sunnyside Pup” or that same pooch under the moonlight in “Moonyside Pup”.
Q. You’ve got a pair of wood wall sculptures of a cat going into and out of a bag. And another pair going into and out of a tunnel of some kind. Are those other examples of your easily understood, contemporary modern?
A. Exactly - you got it, didn't you? Our situational and behavioral concepts, whether prints or wood wall sculpture, are effortlessly charming, engaging and friendly.
Q. Why the 9” x 12” or 16” x 20” print sizing - framed or unframed? And why the White Maple or Walnut veneer-backed wood wall sculpture?
A. Why do clinic walls come in so many sizes, shapes and colors with a veritable obstacle course of obstructions to decorate around? Our art prints mostly group as singles, or in two, three or four variant print colors AND the two sizes mentioned. Depending on a clinic’s needs - in Reception, Exam, Break Room, Hallways, etc., the art can run horizontally, vertically or centered.
Wood wall sculpture, from pretty small to very large, come in two wood veneer choices depending on your wall color, and can be grouped creatively, too, whether it’s a 5’ by 4’ statement wood wall sculpture (easily assembled) for that big reception entry - mixed with (large or small) prints on both sides, or whether you’re just adding a wood wall sculpture “Tall Onesie” momma cat and a couple of kittens, or a Corgi and some pups to a central hallway.
Q. So you're offering the right art, the right print and wall sculpture mix, the right sizing to fit challenging walls…is your pricing right for clinics, too?
A. Our small team of local artisans keeps costs down and prices very reasonable.. We’re made up of myself, our printer personnel and a woodshop colleague, all based here in the Bay Area. That also allows for exceptional quality control. We’re all inspectors, so nothing leaves any of our hands unless it’s flawless.
For our prints, each sheet of canvas-like, 300 weight cotton rag paper only gets the best fade-proof archival inks on the digital press. I then hand-sign and title each individual work. The wood sculptures get the same personal treatment; they come to me from the woodshop to be hand-finished and then have sawtooth picture hangers attached for easy hanging.
Q. So how do you recommend clinics buy? Choose groups of prints and wood wall sculptures for each wall, or have YOU do each wall for them?
A. The answer’s yes, if you want to pick and choose yourself, or yes, if you want my artist’s guidance. Just send me a picture of the wall or walls you want to transform with a few preferences noted, and I’ll keep that in mind and send a picture back of those wall or walls redecorated.
Of course, you get final approval on each wall along with up to three re-do’s per wall. You have no obligation to buy and my consultation time and recommendations are always free.
Q. Besides the great art, do you offer any discounts to incentivize buying? The more one spends, the merrier the discount?
A. Pairs, triples and quads all include a discount from our already reasonable single print pricing. And if you go big, we'll reward you with AN ADDED 30% off for each $1200 worth of Cat and Dog Modern art you buy. We firmly believe you can't successfully take a culture of caring wall to wall piecemeal!
Q. Alright, I’m ending this interview so I can look at your sample wall page.
Perrin Lam
Owner/Artist/Creative Director
Cat and Dog Modern, San Francisco
