Brighton woman brings pets back to life with photorealism

BRIGHTON — A local artist is memorializing her client’s beloved pets with realistic portraits.

Valerie Larson, 20, is a self-taught artist specializing in photorealism, often the recreation of a photo.

“I just want to see how I can improve my skills more,” Larson said. “I'm always trying to make it look more real with every drawing.”

While she grew up in Pinckney, Brighton has been Larson's home for the past two years. She's been drawing most of her life, but started getting serious around 13, when she started selling her work to her mother’s friends and on social media.

Much of her inspiration has come from following other photorealism artists on Instagram and YouTube.

“There were time-lapse videos, but I would just slow them down and watch and learn how to make them look more 3D and real,” Larson said.

After one client asked her to draw their dog, she started getting more and more requests for pets. Most of the time, the animals she draws have died, and her portraits are a way for owners to memorialize them.

“(I love) seeing how happy people are once I can bring their pets back to life through drawing,” Larson said. “It's more personal (than a photo).”

But that doesn't mean pets are exclusive for Larson, who also creates portraits of people and landscapes.

Art is still a part-time pursuit, but she hopes someday to make it a full-time job — memorials and all.

"I've grown to love it."

— Contact reporter Tess Ware at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Brighton woman brings pets back to life with photorealism