About the Cover Artist: Jodi Laycock

Jodi Laycock isn’t ready to give up on art even though she is now blind and uses a guide dog for daily life. The Luseland, Saskatchewan painter started Snow Blind Digital Art, a pet portrait company, after she was diagnosed with ocular myasthenia gravis (OMG), which caused her to go blind and lose mobility.

“It’s been quite the challenge to come to terms with it,” Laycock said of her disease. “As I lost my vision and my ability to move became more difficult, it starts to wear on you, so I had to find a solution.”

Due to her condition, Laycock is unable to move her eyes; they are basically frozen in place. She also has advanced glaucoma, which means she has no peripheral vision with only 10% overall vision. As a result of OMG, she suffers from double vision in the small amount of vision she does have. Since Laycock could no longer paint in a traditional sense, she began exploring other art mediums. Laycock did not know anything about digital art, but she purchased Adobe Photoshop software and learned how to use it by watching instructional YouTube videos. Soon, she taught herself to create artwork digitally the way she once had with a brush.

“When you do digital art it makes it a lot easier. If I make a mistake with a brushstroke, I can correct that right away,” she said.

Since she started, Laycock has gained some famous clients from all over the world, including a member of the royal family and major brands. She also has a large following online.

Laycock specializes in portraits of pets. She has always been an animal lover and she owns 5 Great Danes and a Mastiff.

“Everybody loves their pets like family,” she said. “I just love being part of people’s memories. I want to bring life to that image for the person.” Sometimes this means immortalizing a photo of a deceased pet or just artfully recreating an imperfect snapshot. “I don’t know how much longer I’m going to be able to do this, sadly,” said Laycock. “But I can guarantee I’ll do it as long as I possibly can.”