Artist:  Andréa Denninger

Dog's Name:  Violet

Media:  Computer Photographic Transfer; Machine Quilting

Other info:  Violet was our first Airedale, We adopted her from the local humane society on 7 December 1986; we surmised that she had been used as a breeding bitch, and been fenced in for her approximate seven years of life, since her teeth were worn down from chewing gravel and/or fencing. She had heartworm, for which she was treated successfully.

Violet was diagnosed with skin cancer in the summer of 1987; if she had been a kennel dog, perhaps all the chemicals used at the time contributed to this. My companion, Mr. Scuba, has a special place awaiting him over the Rainbow Bridge for all the care he took of her, sloughing off dead skin and changing dressings. She never became "sick", so we continued to travel with her and take her everywhere we went. She even "won" a look-alike contest with Mr. Scuba.

Violet crossed the Rainbow Bridge on 5 December 1987; she was in our home for 364 days; she is in our hearts forever. When she left us, she had learned to trust a man, and how to play and enjoy her life. After 12 years, I still grieve for the seven years of whatever h*ll she lived before she came to us. I only hope that her 364 days of life with us made up, in some small way, for that h*ll.

My boss & friend for the past 23 years, Bob Anderson, drew this sketch of Violet.

Airedales come in so many sizes, shapes, and shades of black & tan; I incorporated these various shades, from black to gray and from red to beige, in my Log Cabin quilt square. I must thank my good friend Barb Bullock, who gave me lessons and refreshed my memory on how to design and sew quilt squares, and the use of her sewing machine, truly a sign of real friendship!

Contact the Artist here

Return to ADT QUILT PROJECT 1999 here

Thanks to Karen Clouston for the Airedale Graphic

Thanks to Jamie Hare for the Animated Airedale Graphics