Past Exhibits At The Museum
Past Exhibits And Events

Dogs of Tibet

Holy Dogs, Holy Land: Constance Coleman’s Tibetan Journey

When Constance Depler Coleman achieved the lofty summit of her eightieth year, the matriarch of modern dog portraiture put down her paintbrush and (one might say) put her head in the clouds. She announced to a dumbfounded family that she was bound for the mountains of Tibet. A two and one-half-week National Geographic expedition to Tibet led by Ian Baker, author of The Heart of the World, struck her as the perfect opportunity to realize a lifelong dream she had held dear for more than sixty years.

Once her family recovered from their shock at the news, Ms. Coleman admits that it took a bit of finesse to calm their concerns about her health and safety while traveling halfway around the world and to the very tip-top of it (three miles above sea level, for goodness’ sake!). When her daughter agreed to accompany her on the trip, a happy détente was reached.  And with that, a new chapter in Ms. Coleman’s life and career began to unfurl like a prayer flag on a Tibetan mountaintop. As they started out on their Tibetan journey, Ms. Coleman remembers thinking, “How can I turn this into my work?” The Museum is privileged to showcase the unfolding of her new direction with the exhibition dedicated to her Tibetan odyssey in Dogs of Tibet opening in March.

More than a half-century ago, Constance Depler Coleman combined her love of dogs with her art in a lighted-hearted manner and broke new ground in the field of dog portraiture. Her well-known 1950s playful caricatures of humans portrayed as dogs sitting at bars, playing poker, or dancing the night away in fancy nightclubs are highly sought collectibles today. Over the years, Ms. Coleman built her stellar reputation in commissioned animal portraiture and became known for her ability to expertly capture the personality of a beloved animal companion with her brush and sensitive eye for detail, color, and setting. She stands out as one of the premier artists of dog portraiture today, counting among her clients Oscar de la Renta, Lilly Pulitzer, and Oprah Winfrey. Her recent commissioned portrait of the pair of White House Scotties, Barney and Beazley, is now a part of the Museum’s permanent collection.

Ms. Coleman’s involvement in the dog world has always been more than a purely artistic one. Over the years, her continued support of humane and medical efforts for dogs and other animals has not gone unappreciated. Not surprisingly, therefore, one of the first things that struck her when she reached Tibet was the “real communication—the connection—that exists between the people and their dogs.” She recognized a quality mirrored in the Tibetan people and their animals. “The Tibetans are such lovely, serene, calm human beings,” she says. “I was amazed at their mellowness. And their dogs are that way. They were the most laid-back, sweet dogs.” Even the Tibetan Mastiffs Ms. Coleman encountered guarding the monasteries and houses in Tibet surprised her by their even-tempered nature. “They are strictly guard dogs, and they will stand up at a gate and begin ‘woof-woofing’ at an intruder,” she says. “They will put on a big display. But once the person passes by, they simply lie down again. They don’t get excited. I never saw any viciousness in their animals.” 

Dogs do play an integral role in the nonviolent Buddhist culture of Tibet. For thousands of years, the monasteries in Tibet have raised and cherished dogs as animals particularly worthy of reverence. The Lhasa Apsos and Tibetan Spaniels peering out of a monk’s sleeve or perched on satin pillows are believed to be the reincarnation of monks who have not yet reached nirvana. According to tradition, these dogs were never to be bought or sold, and only rarely traveled to new homes as the rare and precious gifts of a lama.  

Ms. Coleman did not encounter the pampered and purebred pets one might expect to find in a land attaching so much heartfelt significance to its canine companions. Instead, what she found in Tibet were native mixed breeds everywhere, from medium-sized shaggy dogs uncombed and bedecked with bells and red collars happily trotting along on leashes beside their masters, to a Pomeranian mix she found in a tent cozily ensconced on a pile of quilts. The doyenne of the classic dog portrait was charmed. “In Tibet,” says Ms Coleman, “dogs look like dogs.”

Ms. Coleman was fascinated by the other animals she encountered in Tibet as well. “The yaks, the funny little black pigs, the goats, the sheep, the donkeys, the ponies, and the chickens—they come in every color you can imagine!” To an artist with a love of color and humorous detail she delighted to find that the Tibetans shared it as well. “They decorate their animals with ribbons and flowers.  And they have now even started decorating their latest form of transportation—their motorcycles!”

Back in the States, Ms. Coleman and her daughter soon made plans for their return to Tibet. For the first time in her illustrious career as a commissioned artist, Ms. Coleman was about to embark on a project all her own. On a second trip to Tibet in the fall, she and her daughter spent a month in the Kham region, meeting more of the gentle people of Tibet and their animals. Ms. Coleman’s daughter spent time distributing funds she had raised in the States to benefit the needy children they had encountered on their first trip, while Ms. Coleman continued her quest to find out more about the people of Tibet and their relationship to their animals. The pictures she took and the images in her mind, the stories she heard, the people she talked to—all will find their way to her canvas in the pen and ink drawings and colored pencils and pastels of Tibetan animals that will make up the March exhibition of her work at the Museum. She hopes to take this project and her love for Tibet, the Tibetan people, and their animals even further. “This exhibit is the first step. The project is evolving,” she says. Of course, another trip to Tibet is a must, and she hopes that a book on Tibetan people and their animals will materialize sometime in the near future.

Like the Tibetan prayer wheels the Lhasa Apsos and Tibetan Spaniels reputedly helped the monks of Tibet turn with their paws, there is no doubt that Ms. Coleman’s own version of a Tibetan prayer wheel will have all the help it needs to keep it spinning—as she continues to capture on canvas the joyous spirit of Tibet’s holy land and its “holy dogs.”

Dogs of Tibet opens in the Special Exhibit Gallery on March 7 and will be available to visitors through May 7.

Dogs of Tibet, Nomads Guard Dog,  pastel by  Constance D. Coleman


Dogs of Tibet, Guarding the Coutyard, pastel by Constance D. Coleman


Constance D. Coleman and the Red Hat ladies of Litang

Ms. Coleman found women the world over share a common bond.  “We’re all interested in what each of us is wearing, what jewelry we have on, and we are curious about these things. This is just as true of the women of Tibet as women anywhere.  It was a common sight to see a group of ladies sitting together on a curb dressed in colorful clothing,” recalls Coleman. “This gathering of Tibetan women in their unique hats somehow reminded me of the Red Hat ladies in America.”

Canine Treasures

For well over a hundred years, the sport of showing purebred dogs has excited canine enthusiasts in countless kennel club competitions throughout the world!

It was inevitable that a dog would be compared with similar dogs in evaluating an ultimate standard that would represent the best of a breed. And it was during the mid-nineteenth century that the first recorded dog shows took place with the introduction of the first American Dog Show held on October 7, 1874, in Mineola, New York. This event was followed by the Tennessee Sportsman’s Association Field Trial at Memphis, Tennessee, on October 8 of the same year.

The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show was first presented in May 1877 at Gilmore’s Garden on Madison Avenue and Twenty-sixth

Street in New York City. The American Kennel Club, established in 1884, produced its first dog show in 1926 to celebrate the country’s sesquicentennial and its second show in 1984 at the Philadelphia Civic Center.



The Museum’s Canine Treasures exhibition on display in the Special Exhibit Gallery offers a glimpse into the history of the dog show world with memorabilia, trophies, art, and artifacts shared by various lenders from across the country.


In addition to material lent by the fancy, Canine Treasures also includes trophies, ribbons, vintage dog show catalogs, and historic medals from the Museum’s permanent collection. Of special interest is an early silver pedestal cup engraved “For the Best Pointer at the Eastern Field Trial, Dec. 1880 Won By Sensation.” The well-known pointer, Sensation, holds the unique distinction of being the well-recognized logo for the Westminster Kennel Club which donated this object to the Museum in 1987.



Also on display from the permanent collection is an illustrious lidded silver cup awarded to Ch. Covy Tucker Hill’s Manhattan by the American Kennel Club at its Centennial Show in 1984. This object was given to the Museum in 1996 by Shirlee G. Braunstein and the estate of Jane A. Firestone.



Loan material sent by Mrs. Alfred Treen of Pasadena, California, includes a beautiful 1906 Atlantic City Show quadruple silver cup manufactured by Balfour Silver Company engraved “For the Best American Bred Dog Won by Gedney Farm Rocksand.” On the front of the cup is a raised sterling silver medallion with the inscription “Dalmatian Club of America, Organized 1905.” Mrs. Treen recalls this piece was found in the open trunk of a car at an outdoor flea market. The trophy was badly tarnished and most likely of little value to whoever owned it at the time. It now proudly belongs in Treen’s collection where tender loving care and silver polish have brought it back to life.



Mary Happel of Dayville, Connecticut, lent a painting by the artist Ruth K. Teeter of the American Staffordshire Terrier Grand Champion River Run’s Lt. Jiggs. The painting, signed and dated 1992, is featured on the 1993 cover of The American Staffordshire Terrier Annual. Happel also provided several photos of Jiggs including an image of this beloved dog with Junior Handler Kyle LaMarque.

Happel recalls, “Jiggs was one of those once in a lifetime dogs. He was a show dog extraordinaire.”

Jean and Robert A. Hetherington of Oxford, Connecticut, lent a Bulldog trophy inscribed on the base: Providence 4-5-8.1902, Presented by Mr. E. E. Codman / Won by Colonel B. and Lady Jane.



Carol Beuchat, award-winning photographer and graduate of Occidental College with a doctorate from Cornell University, provided six color photographs of champion dogs including a Great Pyrenees, Brittany, Ibizan Hound, Australian Shepherd, Papillon, and Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Among Beuchat’s canine clientele are several of the country’s top show dogs. A member of the World Dog Press Association (WDPA), Beuchat won the American Kennel Club’s annual AKC Gazette Photo Contest in 2004 and 2005. She resides in southern California with her English Springer Spaniels Sally and Ginny.



Angela L. Moore of Battle Ground, Washington, sent a picture of her husband Jack C. Moore, Jr., and his Bull Terrier winning first prize at the Oakland Kennel Club in March 1949. Mrs. Moore also sent for exhibit the blue ribbon kept in a shadow box, a loving cup, and a superb Boehm porcelain statue of the winning Bull Terrier.



Additional exhibit material was graciously provided by Emily Nie, Rachel DiAndrea, Georgina Nagy, Ann Katherine, Laura Farrell, Heddie Leger, Rosalind Trigg, and Ashley Dumas.

Canine Treasures

Want to show off Fido's show-winning accomplishments or boast about your dog's winning skills in agility? Want to let everyone know that you have the best field trial dog in the country? The AKC Museum of the Dog is seeking loan material for its first-ever Canine Treasures exhibit which will include a variety of artifacts associated with dog shows and dog-related events. If you own a champion show-dog portrait, pastel, or drawing, artifacts, photos, trophies, dog show collectibles, or other dog related items that would be available for loan, please contact Museum Director Barbara Jedda McNab at 314-821-3647 or email by clicking here.

Artists' Registry Exhibitions

The fifth in a series of popular Artists' Registry Exhibitions opened in the Museum's Special Exhibit Gallery in June and featured thirteen works of art by Anita Baarns of Round Hill, Virginia as well as fifteen paintings in acrylic by Nan Kilgore Little of Gladstone, Virginia. Also exhibited were whimsical, mixed-media sculptures by artist Jack Dowd of Sarasota, Florida. While the Museum's previous Artists' Registry Exhibition featured solely paintings, this special presentation included a mix of oil, pastel, and acrylic portraits that were shown in conjunction with Dowd's three-dimensional works of art.

Baarns who was born in Fontainebleu, France, is heavily influenced by the subject of horses and hounds and has exhibited a the American Academy of Equine Art in Lexington, Kentucky, and her work has appeared many times on the cover of The Chronicle of the Horse. In 1998, Baarns became a naturalized citizen of the United States. She also won the Jean Bowman Award for Best in Show for her work entered in the Sporting Art Exhibition sponsored by the Museum of Hounds and Hunting at Morven Park in Leesburg, Virginia.

Nan Kilgore Little grew up in rural Maryland, but always felt Virginia, where she currently resides with her husband and a geriatric crew of Ibizan Hounds, four Pugs, and an Australian Cattle Dog in Bent Creek, was her spiritual home. Little believes that aesthetics, color, and luminosity are important elements in her work, but her interests in light and the personality of individual subjects are paramount. Little boasts numerous private commissions.

Jack Dowd knew at an early age he possessed a passion for art. After graduating from Adelphi University in Garden City, New York, Dowd became a high school art teacher and by the 1970s, his artistic interests had developed into a more serious pursuit. It was during this time he discovered his whimsical, expressionistic style of sculpture.

Dowd seeks inspiration in the everyday, often seeking out the overlooked simplicities of life. He then translates his experiences into an artistic language that speaks to everyone.

The Museum's Artists' Registry is a free resource comprising biographical information on more than two hundred artists available by commission for dog portraits or dog-related art. Artists interested in joining the Artists' Registry should send a one-time $5 fee along with photographs of their work to the AKC Museum of the Dog, 1721 S. Mason Rd., St. Louis, Missouri, 63131.

The most recent Artists' Registry Exhibition was available from June through September 2006.