Are you an art lover searching for the perfect name for your new canine companion? Perhaps you will be drawn to a name of one of the greats of the art world! From Renaissance masters to contemporary creators, we’ve gathered a list of artist dog names for the fur baby who completes your family portrait.
Dog Names Inspired by Abstract Artists
Piet Mondrian
A dog name for the fan of primary colors…or the 70s sensation The Partridge Family!
Jackson Pollock
Visitors of the Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center in East Hampton, New York might spot scratch marks on the artist’s studio door. The carvings came from the claws of Pollock’s two canine companions, Gyp and Ahab.
A Border Collie mix, Gyp’s name was an homage to a barking buddy from the abstract expressionist’s childhood, while the Standard Poodle Ahab was named after a character from the Herman Melville novel Moby Dick.
Beatrice Wood
Also known by the nickname Beato, the “Mama of Dada” was the inspiration for the character of Rose deWitt-Bukater in the James Cameron-directed blockbuster Titanic.
Art Deco
Erté
Perhaps due to the dogs’ natural sleek physique, the Borzoi was often the breed of choice when this legend of the Art Deco era added animal images to his creations.
Louis Icart
This French painter and illustrator captured the grace of Greyhounds in several of his most famous works.
Tamara de Lempicka
Even those who are not art aficionados may recognize the work of “The Baroness with a Brush,” as her work is associated with several of Madonna’s music videos.
Art Nouveau
Gustav Klimt
An admirer of the divine feline, this Austrian artist was a proud Poppa to several cats, among them a purring pal called Katze (the German word for cat).
Klimt once stated: ‘It doesn’t matter if they crumple or tear a few sheets.” He said that, if they happened to urinate on his work, “…don’t you know, that’s the best fixative.”
Alphonse Mucha
Considered by some to be the father of the Art Nouveau movement.
Théophile Steinlen
Fond of felines, Steinlen– who often fed cats who lived on the streets of Montmartre– placed kitties in several of his creations.
Dutch Golden Age
Rembrandt
Among the estimated 100 self-portraits painted by the Dutch master is “Self-Portrait in Oriental Attire with Poodle.”
Vermeer
If your new barking buddy or purring pal loves to lounge in sun puddles, you might want to name them after this renowned artist, who gained fame for his unique use of light.
Impressionism
Berthe Morisot
Several dogs can be spotted in the works of this Impressionist, who was the sister-in-law of painter Edouard Manet. (The name Berthe means “bright and famous.”)
Camille Claudel
A sculptor who lived with many cats, the French muse and assistant of Rodin sculpted a canine-themed work, “Dog Gnawing Her Bone.”
Camille Pissarro
Known for his paintings of landscapes, the name Pissarro would be a good fit for a pup who loves the outdoors.
Edgar Degas
An iconic Impressionist who often captured the beauty of ballet in pastels, his name would be a good fit for a graceful dog.
Edouard Manet
Best known for his portraits of people, several pets also posed for Manet, including Zizi, his wife’s cat, a Japanese Spaniel called Tama, and Bob (either a Cairn Terrier or a Brussels Griffon), who was the canine companion of one of Manet’s friends.
Claude Monet
The father of impressionism.
Pierre-August Renoir
Bob, the Impressionist’s pup, appears in several Renoir masterpieces.
Illustrators
Howard Chandler Christy
Known for creating the “Christy Girl,” this renowned illustrator enjoyed equal fame as a painter. Chosen to create the official portrait of First Lady Grace Coolidge, he decided to also immortalize Rob Roy, the President and First Lady’s Collie, in the work, which hangs in The White House China Room.
Edward Gorey
Once a pet parent to six cats, the late illustrator focused on the feline form for the books Category: Fifty Drawings by Edward Gorey and the Gorey-illustrated edition of T.S. Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats.
His love of all creatures great and small continues through The Edward Gorey Charitable Trust, which distributes the royalties from his work to several animal welfare organizations.
Neysa McMein
If you are looking for a unique name for your fur baby, the name of this illustrator (who was a member of The Algonquin Table back in the 1920s) means “holy’ or “pure.”
Patrick Nagel
The epitome of the 80s aesthetic, among this artist’s prints are works that include a Doberman Pinscher and a Great Dane.
Norman Rockwell
Would you believe that dogs are featured in 55 of the 323 covers of The Saturday Evening Post that Rockwell illustrated?
His own barking buddy– a Collie mix named Raleigh— makes an appearance in several of the magazine’s most famous covers, including a print known both as “Making Friends” and “Raleigh Rockwell.”
The artist’s last four-legged friend was a Beagle mix named Pitter, who was drawn for posterity by his proud pet parent for a Rockwell Christmas card.
Fido-loving art aficionados can discover more about the illustrator’s four-legged inspirations in the book Faithful Friends: Norman Rockwell and His Dogs by Margaret Rockwell.
Modern Art
Basquiat
The late Neo-expressionist, who famously posed with a Siamese cat for photographer James Van Der Zee, immortalized a canine on canvas in the graffiti-style “Dog” and “Boy and Dog in a Johnnypump.”
Modigliani
If your dog sports a swan-like neck or if your feline’s form is particularly elongated, you might consider naming your new furry friend after this Italian artist, whose signature style featured models with drawn out features.
Georgia O’Keeffe
Sightseers in San Francisco who visit the Sydney G.Walton Square can see sculptor Marisol Escobar’s interpretation of the modernist and two of her tail wagging chums.
O’Keeffe was besotted by Chow Chows, and was a proud pet parent to at least six of the breed, among them Bo, Chia, Inca and her last dog, Jinga. A member of The Chow Chow Club, the artist called her canine companions ‘little people.’
Pop Art
David Hockney
This British artist, who once held the record for the most expensive work of art to ever be sold at an auction, immortalized his two Dachshunds through paintings, drawings and in words in his book “Dog Days.”
Hockney named his Dachshunds Stanley and Boodgie and said of these sausage dogs, “These two dear little creatures are my friends.”
Although devoted to his Dachshunds, Hockney gained international fame with help from a cat who posed for posterity with her pet parents for the painting “Mr. and Mrs. Clark and Percy,” which is displayed in London’s Tate Gallery.
Jasper Johns
Dougal, a mixed breed dog from the Caribbean islands, has kept this pop art icon company while he created in his Connecticut studio.
Roy Lichtenstein
Fans of pop art can view the artist’s comic book-inspired canine creation Grrrrrrrrrr!! at the Guggenheim museum in New York City.
Peter Max
While his vibrant use of color helped him to gain fame in the 60s and 70s, this pop art legend is also known in the world of animal welfare for creating a brighter tomorrow for all of our friends with fur, fins and feathers.
Andy Warhol
Drawn to both dogs and cats, this pop culture icon was a pet parent to two Dachshunds named Amos and Archie, and at one time shared a home with twenty-five cats. His love of felines features prominently in his book 25 Cats Named Sam and One Blue Pussy.
Post-Impressionists
Gauguin
During his time in Tahiti this French post-impressionist enjoyed the companionship of a canine he called Pego, which is a naughty anatomical nickname.
Dogs are featured in several of Gauguin’s works, including “Landscape with Dog,” “The Red Dog” and “Still Life with Three Puppies.”
Pablo Picasso
A Dachshund called Lumpy acted as a muse for 45 of the artist’s works!
Georges Seurat
A pair of pups can be spotted in Seurat’s most famous pointilist painting, “A Sunday On the Island of La Grande Jatte.”
Vincent Van Gogh
If your new dog has a yellow coat, you might want to name your fur baby in honor of the Dutch Post-Impressionist, as yellow was his favorite color.
Realists
Edward Hopper
The artist’s Siamese cat Perkins Youngboy Dos Passos (his name a nod to novelist John dos Passos) kept Hopper company as he painted, and even found his way into a few of his famous pet parent’s works.
John Singer Sargent
Pups were often included in the portraits of Sargent’s upper class clientele.
Wyeth
Andrew Wyeth’s dogs Nell Gwyn and Rattler were immortalized by their gifted pet parent in several paintings.
Dogs also take center stage on several canvases by N.C. Wyeth, including “Portrait of A Dog,” which features the artist’s then 15-year-old son (Andrew) sketching his barking buddy from childhood, a Boston Bull Terrier dubbed Lupe.
Renaissance
Fra Angelico
Pet parents with a love of Early Renaissance may want to name their new four-legged friend after the creator of religious works, or choose the name for which he is now known in the land of his birth– Beato Angelico, or Blessed Angelic One.
Botticelli
The Early Renaissance artist known for “The Birth of Venus” and “Primavera”.
Leonardo da Vinci
Known as both an artistic and scientific genius, da Vinci also possessed emotional intelligence, as he stated his admiration for our pals who purr by writing: “The smallest feline is a masterpiece.”
Donatello
The Early Renaissance Florentine sculptor who created a version of David before the birth of Michelangelo.
Dürer
This German painter/printmaker strove to recreate the complexities of the canine and cat form in many of his works.
Michaelangelo
Did you know that the iconic Italian painter/sculptor worked on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel under the gaze of a canine critic? It is believed that the artist’s Pomeranian pal sat on a satin pillow and watched Michelangelo create his masterpiece.
Raphael
Although some may think that you’ve named your new fur baby after an anthropomorphic turtle, art lovers will recognize the name of the High Renaissance master.
Titian
Did you know that the Papillon was once known as the Titian Spaniel? The breed can be seen in many of the Venetian painter’s works, including “Portrait of Eleanora Gonzaga della Rovere” and “Portrait of Clarissa Strozzi.”
Street Art
Banksy
Although it has never made tails wag, tongues have certainly wagged after viewing the unsettling image of “Man with Dog” at the Sorbonne University in Paris. The anonymous street artist also paid homage to Keith Haring when creating the dog seen in “Choose Your Weapon.”
Keith Haring
A pal to all with paws, the late, great graffiti-influenced artist once created a poster for The Humane Society of Broward County. Pups played a prominent role in many of Haring’s works.
He shared his love of canines through both quotes and colorful canine drawings in the picture book Dogs, which was published in 2000.
Surrealists
Salvador Dali
Favoring felines who walked on the wild side, this Spanish surrealist was a proud pet parent of an ocelot named Babou!
Frida Kahlo
Although a master of surrealism, this artist once stated, “I don’t paint dreams or nightmares, I paint my own reality.”
Kahlo’s reality included the companionship of many animals, among them a deer named Granizo, a spider monkey she called Fulang-Chang, Bonito the parrot, an eagle known as Gertudis Caca Blanca, and several Xoloitzcuintli (Xolo) dogs, which are the national dog of Mexico.
One of her hairless barking buddies, Señor Xolotl, even makes an appearance in a few of her masterpieces, including “The Love Embrace of The Universe, the Earth (Mexico), Diego, Me and Senor Xolotl.”
Also see: Chihuahua dog names
Rene Magritte
Just as animals featured prominently in the works of this Belgian artist, so Pomeranians played a prominent role in the surrealist’s life.
Magritte and his wife were pet parents to several fur babies over the years: two Poms were called Loulou, the other two were known as Jackie.
One of the Jackies even posed for the painting “Le Civilisateur (The Civiliser),” which was estimated to fetch between $880,000 and $3 million when it was auctioned off by Barnebys in 2019.
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