Frankston portrait artist, Lorna Wheele of Pop-Up Pawtraits captures the essence of her subjects in just ten minutes. Even more impressive, she does it in the vibrant atmosphere of an outdoor market. The clients who commission Lorna routinely comment on how accurately she conveys the unique personality of their dog, cat or the occasional chicken.
Lorna works from a photograph, often on a phone, focusing first and last on the windows to the soul. “Like people, I find the greatest connection through the eyes. Looking at an animal closely, I get to know who it is, not just its physical make up, but its character,” she says.
The funny thing is that Lorna has never had a pet of her own although she has longed for one her whole life. “When I was little, I used to cry under the kitchen table about not having a dog. I was always drawing dogs. I even wrote a dog ownership manual when I was a child,“ she says.
It was just a matter of circumstance that her family never had a dog. Nowadays, she gets vicarious enjoyment drawing them and also feels lucky and very happy to be sharing a home with her brother and sister-in law’s two Blue Heelers: Echo and puppy, Dory, who is an adorable bundle of rambunctious energy.
Lorna comes from a tiny village outside of Brighton in Southern England. While an idyllic place for a child, when she grew older, Lorna wanted to spread her wings to Brighton and beyond. Lorna’s mother is an artist/illustrator. “We were always drawing. It was just something my mother, sister and I were intrinsically interested in,” she says. Her father is a graphic designer. A good sense of line runs in the family.
When Lorna went to high school to do her A levels, she chose art and photography as her subjects. After that, she completed a foundation year in drawing and painting before being accepted into Kingston School of Art in West London where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Illustration/Animation.
In 2018 she started sketching her friends’ dogs. She decided to try a little pop up market for London’s Dogs Day Out where she added colour to the mix. People loved her life-like portraits of their pooches. She was invited back for a Halloween event with dogs in costume which she loved. The instant success of these events gave Lorna the idea for her current business, Pop-Up Pawtraits.
She continued making detailed custom pet portraits for friends and family while living in Sussex. Lorna tried a market in a pub garden that went so well that she was offered a regular spot. On top of experience, it gave her insight and an opportunity to work on branding and development.
When I was little, I used to cry under the kitchen table about not having a dog. I was always drawing dogs
When Lorna came to Melbourne for a wedding in October of 2025 she decided to stay. She was encouraged to apply for Emu Plains and Little Beauty Markets and was immediately accepted. Her first market was at Emu Plains in January 2026. She was instantly embraced by market goers clambering for her amazing 10-minute pet portraits.
Like most artists, Lorna had a back-up plan. She completed a Post Graduate degree in Education and worked as a secondary school art instructor teaching art and photography. When she moved to Australia she continued as a casual relief teacher while building her Pop-Up Pawtraits business.
Though Lorna has always dreamed of exhibiting in a gallery, she hasn’t achieved that yet. She’s quite happy at the moment working in her favourite medium – pencil – on her favourite subject which is animals.
“I love the softness of lead on the page. It has an immediacy, but not a permanence so I don’t get freaked out. I can just erase it if I want. I can document what I see in real time on the spot. Pencil is my friend. I most enjoy drawing from life,” she says.
When she isn’t drawing pets, Lorna likes to sketch during her travels, hang out in cafés and people watch. “I love people just milling about in cafés. I like to draw people’s hands. I love drawing forgotten areas like the corner of a building with a lone bin or a falling-apart shed with a corrugated iron roof,” she says.
Most of her pet portrait work comes through the markets, but strong word of mouth has also funnelled a lot of people to her Instagram account where she is more than happy to accept new commissions. And eventually, she’ll get that dog.
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