Meet the Artist!

When I was but a mere pup, long before I became a writer and copy/content editor for RingTV.com, I had a lot of time on my hands (I wasn't very popular) and little money to get into trouble with. I did have quite a bit of imagination and a huge love affair with comic books, however, so I spent the time I had trying (and I do mean trying) to emulate my four-color artistic influences.

So I drew.

And I drew and drew and drew. I never got any dates and had only three friends (and one of them really sucked) and pencils and paper are really inexpensive. What would you do?

After while, I got pretty good, I guess. But I also got a little bored drawing Superman, Captains America and Marvel and wondered if I could (or should) try my hand at other things so I figured I'd try portraits. Why not? If I screwed up, who would care? I would just pitch 'em if they sucked anyway.

I thought I did OK (once again, I guess) and when I got what most folks thought was pretty good, I started doing portraits for anyone who would wanna buy them.

The thing is, once you (not you at home. The "royal you." That means all of y'all) do something long enough, you might get the sense that you're really, REALLY good. Not necessarily. What makes you good is knowing that you'll never be the best.

Confused? Me too.

Just kidding.

What I'm trying to say is that, you can never practice too much and you can never draw too much influence from everything around you. So I drew everything and everyone I could. After I became a writer for one of the coolest and quirkiest websites in the world, Doghouse Boxing, I looked at the fine people I wrote about and interviewed: Fighters.

Human beings.

Human beings with stories. Human beings with ghosts. Human beings with passion. Human beings with purpose. Human beings with goals. Some of the finest human beings in the world like you and me.

With a little positive reinforcement from renowned sports artist Richard Slone, I asked myself, "Why can't you do this?"

So here I am. And I think I'm pretty good at it. And I wanna do the same thing. I want to create high quality art at a decent price. And hopefully, I can create something for you that you'll be proud to hang on your wall or maybe give as a gift.

And no, I don't just do renderings of fighters. I'll draw anything you want. Your dog. Your aunt Ethel. David Caruso. I'll even draw that creepy guy that hangs around your sliding glass door hoping to get a peek at you in a towel after you hop outta the shower (It might even be useful in court!).

So hey, pop on in and take a look around. See if you dig my stuff. I'm proficient in acrylics, graphite, watercolor pencils and Copic markers (and I goof a little with Photoshop. I don't consider myself an Ace at it, but it's fun!) and am always thinking of new ways to move art forward. And maybe...just maybe...I can work up something super-ginchy for you.


Here, you'll find clickable examples of my work, in both paints and graphite, consisting of privately-owned pieces and commissions that I hope you'll enjoy. Hopefully, you'll consider me for your next portrait, whether it's of a loved one, celebrity, athlete or fictional character (or whomever!). I wholeheartedly believe I'm a refreshing alternative to other artists who charge far too much for pieces that are far too small. Below, to your right, you'll see a detailed price list, complete with portrait sizes in both acrylic and graphite. If you find my prices reasonable (and I certainly hope you do), feel free to contact me at artofthepaw@gmail.com with your commission requests. Or you could even stop in and say hello.

You can also follow me on X (formerly Twitter. I STILL call it Twitter. Hey, the Willis Tower will ALWAYS be the Sears Tower to me) @CoyoteDuran, on Instagram @CoyoteDuran, on Threads @CoyoteDuran, on BlueSky @coyoteduran.bsky.social and on Facebook @CDCreationNation.

And stay groovy, Howlers.;)