Painting English Setters: A Life With the Breed

If you’re looking for an artist to create a portrait of your English Setter, experience with the breed matters more than most people realize.

I’ve lived with English Setters long enough to stop thinking of them as a “breed” and start thinking of them as a way of life.

I understand where they come from, why they look the way they do, and what they were bred to do. I know why a good Setter moves the way it does, and why expression counts for so much. I know what makes them light up, what shuts them down, and what they need to be happy, fulfilled dogs.

I also know the challenges. I’ve lived with the common health issues in the breed, deafness and hypothyroidism, and the daily management that comes with them. I’ve also dealt with less common medical problems that pushed me into learning far more about veterinary medicine than I ever expected. Loving any dog means accepting that sometimes the care is complicated, and sometimes the heartbreak is real.

My first English Setter was a rescued deaf Llewellin named Carter. I’d already lived with gundogs, Goldens, Labs, Tollers, Flat-Coats, but Carter was different. He was demanding, sensitive, funny, exhausting, and unforgettable. He didn’t just introduce me to the breed, he pulled me all the way in. I’ve been an English Setter owner for over twenty years now, and I’ve never looked back.

Over the years, I’ve lived with multiple Setters and spent countless hours simply observing them. Some were classic and refined. Some were athletic and intense. Some were soft, cautious souls who needed time to trust. And one, in particular, was gloriously untraditional, very un-breedlike, and still one of the most handsome dogs I’ve ever known. Living with that range teaches you quickly that no two Setters are the same, even when they share the same name on paper.

As a member of the English Setter Association of America, I know the breed standard. I’ve put my hands on and my eyes on some truly exceptional English Setters at breed shows. I understand correct head shape, eye color, coat texture, and what a proper outline should look like when everything is working together. I’ve also fostered for English Setter rescues and have lived with the full range of what this breed can look like. English Setters come in more shapes and sizes than a standard ever captures, and every one of them deserves to be seen for who they are. I know the difference between a natural coat and a spay or neuter coat, and how that changes the way light hits the fur. I know what people mean when they talk about “grinch feet,” and what a nice coat is actually supposed to look like, not just in a photo, but in real life.

All of that matters when I’m editing and painting a portrait. It informs how I handle coat volume, how I manage feathering, how I keep a dog from looking oddly trimmed. It affects how I approach eye color and expression, and how I keep a Setter looking like themselves rather than a generic long-haired dog.

And yes, I love painting them. English Setters are a gift to an artist. The long, flowing coat, the way light moves through the feathering, the softness that still holds athletic power underneath. Capturing that balance is deeply satisfying. Those details affect how a portrait is edited, painted, and finished, especially when working from photographs taken in everyday conditions rather than a studio.

My connection to the breed goes beyond portraits. I wrote a book about English Setters, one that’s already been revised once and probably needs another update at this point. Writing it forced me to step back and think about the breed as a whole, its history, its variety, its quirks, and why people fall so hard for these dogs. That same understanding carries into my artwork.

When I paint an English Setter, I’m not learning the breed on the fly. I’m drawing from decades of living with them, caring for them, worrying over them, and loving them. I understand the elegance, but I also understand the mud, the chaos, the stubborn streak, and the deep loyalty.

If you love English Setters, you already know they’re not interchangeable with any other dog. They leave a mark.

My goal, when I create a portrait, is to honor that. Not just the way your dog looks, but the way they exist in your life. For people who share this breed, that understanding matters. English Setters aren’t just another subject to me. They’re a breed I’ve lived with, studied, fostered, and painted for decades. When someone asks me to create a portrait of their Setter, I know what they’re trusting me with.