A Step at a Time w/ Antonia Bruce

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Learning To Walk (Again) With Your Dogs

About The Episode

Antonia Bruce always loved dogs, but it wasn’t until she was a mother that a dog first came into her life. After attending drawing school at one point to grow in her work artist, Antonia’s sister had puppies and she finally agreed to get a family dog – particularly for her youngest daughter, who was ten at the time and kept writing letters to ask for a dog. Tio was that furry friend, and he made their family feel complete.

When the kids later were older and out of the house, Antonia had a health issue arise. There was fluid in the bones around her feet and up to her knees, and she was instructed by doctors to basically stay off her feet as much as possible. Antonia worked on her recovery, doing minor things along the way as she could. But it was a difficult time to go through, to manage, and to not go too stir-crazy after she grew up as an outdoorsy person.

Later on, to help work through the situation, Antonia ended up getting two puppies with her husband. These new dogs, Hal and Isla became, would not be family dogs – they would have a greater purpose. While they knew the choice would come with some sacrifice, they thought it would be worth it. Hal and Isla first bonded with Antonia and her husband at home, just spending time together in their kitchen and growing that initial bond.

Then, Hal and Isla were starting to learn to walk as puppies at the same time as Antonia was getting back on her feet. They were also fox hounds, a brave choice of harder-to-train dogs, but Antonia embraced the challenge. They would get walks in throughout the day, with Antonia simultaneously increasing her walking time as the dogs needed to.

Her doctors even approved of the decision and thought it made sense, and were thrilled to see the results later on – even mentioning they may start recommending it to other patients.

It did take a notable amount of effort to train them, particularly given the fox hound breed. But one thing Antonia did was talk to some huntsman, who no longer go on actual hunts but still walk and train dogs of the breed. While they initially were skeptical of her, Antonia’s interest to learn more about her companions eventually won them over. They shared their insights and gave helpful tips.

In addition, Antonia started to draw the dogs they had and it became a special artistic project for her. She would spend hours, sitting there as this big group of dogs would fight for attention and later get bored. Antonia worked within pencils and later taking them into printmaking and etching as well. In the process, she learned about capturing their movement and the fleeting energy of that minute. At the same time, she got to understand the intricacies of fox hounds – and thus her own dogs – to an even greater degree.

About The Guest - Antonia Bruce

Antonia Bruce is an artist who started as an independent filmmaker and a founding member of London Video Arts, which had sponsorship from the British Film Institute. She also established and taught an art program at a school in Sweden, as she continued to explore a mixture of mediums in her own work over the years – including everything from drawing to 'camera-less' photography. Her work has been featured in several exhibitions.

Featured Links

InterviewJack SommerMental Health, Art / Creativity