Dachshunds of Celebrities, Artists, and Writers
Devoted Companions to Warhol, Picasso and John Wayne
Sep 15, 2009
Well-represented in pop culture thanks to its elongated, sausage-like body, dachshunds appear in everything from movies such as "All Dogs Go to Heaven" and "The Ugly Dachshund" to Far Side creator Gary Larson's spot-on Weiner Dog Art. But, just as the breed's history spans centuries, its contribution to art, literature, and movies goes beyond the punchline.
Origins of the Dachshund
Originally bred to hunt, the long, low-backed dachshund was purposely bred to be able to fit into the tight burrows of badgers. Antique engravings and paintings offer great examples of the dachshund’s considerable physical variations during the 1700s and 1800s when the dogs tended to be larger and more powerful than the current standard.
Related to basset hounds and beagles and popularized in Germany, descriptions of the breed appeared in the 1700s and possibly earlier but historians disagree on whether similar representations made in earlier art and literature truly portray dachshunds. Modern dachshunds fall into the larger standard size or smaller miniature size and their coats can be wire-haired, smooth (short-haired), or long-haired. Coat colors vary widely with black/tan, red, dapple, piebald, brindle, and the rare all-white coat. Regardless of its origin, the smart, stubborn and diminutive dachshund has been a popular companion and occasional muse in modern society.
Dachshunds in Pop Art, Plate Art, and Behind the Scenes
With their striking proportions, dachshunds have captured the eye of several highly influential painters during the twentieth century. Frieda Kahlo and Diego Rivera kept dachshunds during their tumultuous relationship and were photographed with one in Rivera’s arms, capturing his full attention while Frieda focuses her gaze while gently petting the dog.
Pablo Picasso’s relationship with rambunctious red dachshund Lump inspired an entire book of photos with the painter cradling the sturdy dog in his arms and painting representations of Lump on a dinner plate. The photographs show just how much Lump assimilated into Picasso's life, playing with the much larger boxer and Picasso's children. Most tellingly, Picasso made a rabbit for Lump to "hunt" and laughed when the dog ate the paper art.
Perhaps most unexpectedly, Andy Warhol carried his dachshund with him until he bought a companion dachshund, making two a little too much to tote and he kept Amos and Archie at home. Although best known for his colorful work starring glamorous Marilyn Monroe and the famous iconic Campbell Soup can, Warhol immortalized a black and tan with a purple-tinted pop art depiction.
Dachshunds as Muse in Literature and Stress Relief
Writers gravitated towards the independent dachshund as companion or even as the future subject of a series. PG Wodehouse owned Jed, whose antics inspired his wry observations on dogs. H.A. Rey and Margret Rey, most famous for their books about Curious George's adventures as a monkey in an American city, also wrote children’s books about their dachshund Pretzel beginning in 1944.
While EB White wrote about Wilber the Pig and clever Charlotte the spider in Charlotte’s Web and a boy’s devotion to trumpeter swans in the Trumpet of the Swans, at home he enjoyed relaxing with his dachshund.
Celebrities and Dachshunds: Going Hollywood with John Wayne and Joan Crawford
During the Golden Age in Hollywood, the fairly portable dachshunds became common companions to actors whose mystique remains today. Clark Gable and Carole Lombard’s dachshund was named “Commissioner”. Tough guys Marlon Brando and John Wayne each had the little dogs with the deceptively deep bark and Joan Crawford doted on her dachshund.
Sources:
British Dogs by H.Dalziel, 1889.
Cassell’s Book of the Dog, 1881.
The New Dachshund by Lois Meistrell, 1976. Contains considerable history of the breed’s origins and modern breeding.
Picasso & Lump: A Dachshund’s Odyssey by David Douglas Duncan. 2006.
 |
 |
