A Tiger Bigger than the Studio
CHEF TALKS | Jeff Ruby, Mike Wong, Buddy LaRosa.
Some commissions push your creativity. Others push the limits of your studio.
When I was commissioned through Milcroft Gallery to create an 84″ × 100″ Bengal tiger painting, the adventure started before the first brushstroke. The canvas had to be custom made at Suders Art Store in downtown Cincinnati, and they did an amazing job. From there, a box truck picked it up and delivered it to my home studio in Union, Kentucky.
Then came the big question: would it even fit through the door?
Barely. But it did.
Had it not made it through, I would have been painting this one in the garage. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
I brought Colin Daugherty in for a painting session on the piece, and together we helped bring this massive tiger to life before it found its permanent home inside one of Cincinnati’s premier event venues.
Once complete, the painting was picked up by box truck again, and I followed it for final delivery. Because of its size and weight, it was professionally installed using a lift, and I personally triple-wired it to make sure it would remain secure for years to come.
Less than a month later, the painting became the backdrop for a fundraising event benefiting La Soupe, where more than $250,000 was raised to fight food insecurity. Seated beneath the painting were Buddy LaRosa, Jeff Ruby, and Mike Wong of Oriental Wok.
A painting doesn’t end when the last brushstroke dries. Sometimes it becomes part of something much bigger.
Untamed Glory | Portrait of the Cincinnati Bengal Tiger, 84″ × 100″ acrylic on canvas by Jeff Johns and Colin Daugherty
“The painting is perfect, the process was simple and I couldn’t be happier with it’s powerful presence above the mantel in our event space.”
The Painting Lives On.
Using Midjourney, I reimagined the original Bengal tiger painting with artificial intelligence, bringing new motion, energy, and atmosphere to the story.
The original painting remains the soul.
AI simply gave the tiger a new way to roar.
The Scale of the Painting
Size: 84″ × 100″
Medium: Acrylic on canvas
Commissioned through: Milcroft Gallery
Canvas: Custom made by Suders Art Store in downtown Cincinnati
Delivery: Transported by box truck to my home studio in Union, Kentucky
Installation: Professionally installed using a lift
Collaboration: Painted by Jeff Johns with a painting session by Colin Daugherty
Interested in something similar? I’d love to create a custom painting inpsired by your story.
The commission process is simple: three easy steps to bring your idea to life. When you’re ready, head to the contact page and tell me what you’d love to create.
Whether it’s a place, memory, pet, portrait, or something you’ve dreamed up, we’ll shape the vision together before the painting begins.