Whimsical Dog Art by Huneck

Vermont's well-known author, artist and sculptor Stephen Huneck started out as an antique furniture picker. Luckily he was discovered after doing his very first woodcarving, an angel. Huneck then began his life as an artist, soon branching out into a variety of expressive media. After a near-death experience, the versatile artist was moved to create the celebrated Dog Chapel, which he described to Vermont Living Magazine as "a place where people can go and celebrate the spiritual bond they have with their dogs." The building is entirely decorated with dog-themed artwork — from the sculptured wooden dogs who flank the pews and benches, to the seven stained-glass windows celebrating the canine virtues of love, faith, peace, joy, friendship, playfulness, and trust. I built that chapel on Dog Mountain, our mountain-top farm in St. Johnsbury ... and styled it in the manner of a small village church built in Vermont around 1820. It is important to me that the chapel looks like it belongs with its setting of rolling mountains and pasture. The white steeple points up to the heavens, and on the top is a Lab with wings that turns in the wind and proclaims this place has a special affinity with dogs. Known for his whimsical hand-carved furniture, sculpture, and woodcut prints, Huneck is also the author of numerous books for children, including My Dog's Brain and the Sally Goes To... series of books, which is based on the adventures of the artist's own Labrador Retriever. Several of Huneck's charming glicee prints, based on his original woodcuts, are reproduced as free e-cards available on his website, along with a screensaver of the quaint Dog Chapel itself.