MONTPELIER, VT. (AP) — Folk artist Stephen Huneck, whose whimsical paintings, sculptures, and woodcut prints of dogs celebrated his love of animals and won him a worldwide fan base, has died. He was 60. He was the artist who created the dog walker and five dogs in The Pleasance at 1 Main Street, Newtown.

Huneck, of St Johnsbury, committed suicide on January 7 in Littleton, N.H. His wife said he was despondent after being forced to lay off employees at his Dog Mountain studio and dog chapel.

"Like many Americans, we had been adversely affected by the economic downturn," Gwen Huneck wrote in a letter Friday announcing his death. "Stephen feared losing Dog Mountain and our home. Then on Tuesday we had to lay off most of our employees. This hurt Stephen deeply. He cared about them and felt responsible for their welfare."

Two days later, he shot himself in the head while sitting in a parked car outside the office of his psychiatrist, she said.

Huneck's books, about his beloved Labrador retrievers — including Sally Goes to the Beach, Sally Goes to the Farm, and Sally Gets a Job — featured woodcut prints accompanied by quirky captions.

"They were totally unique, very insightful, particularly for dog lovers," said Irwin Gelber, executive director of the St Johnsbury Athenaeum, a library and art center where Huneck frequently gave readings. "He seemed to create works and captions that just captured, that expressed every dog lover's insights into owning and loving animals."