Maarten Wetsema
Jaap with jumping cat

1994
photography | c-print in frame
60 x 60 cm

Maarten Wetsema (b. 1966, Uithoorn, The Netherlands) gained fame for his portraits of dogs. For them he begins by carefully selecting the background and furniture for the shot, so that the dog fits perfectly in the picture, and the picture with the dog.

Initially he used his own dog as a model in these photos, but also did canine portraits on commission, for which he also spent hours getting the relationships between the dog and background, furniture and props just right.

Then one pet led to another, as in this photograph of Jaap with his jumping cat.