Sunday, December 18, 2011

Fuzzy


This is a last minute Christmas gift portrait of my mother's cat.   When you're 87, it becomes a challenge to find gifts that are needed or wanted.  Her cats play a role in her life, so I thought a portrait may make a good gift idea.

This cat, like many others she has adopted over the years arrived as one of the kittens from a pregnant cat that seemed to think my mother's house was the maternity ward.  It was hand raised as the owner of the mother cat claimed it back, and left one of the kittens as thanks, but really too soon to be taken from its mother.   The cat is probably 13 or 14 years old now, a huge, long haired beast, with enough fur to withstand a Siberian winter.


This painting was done from a blurry cell phone image of the cat, so there's a bit of guesswork and reference to other similarly coloured cats that had to be done. There is another cat, mostly black, at my mother's house, but it never stays still long enough to get an image of it.  So the companion piece for this may have to wait.

The painting is 8" x 8" in acrylic on a canvas panel.

13 comments:

Elena said...

Lovely thought and image.

Kristin said...

Beautiful painting! I really love the eyes!

black bear cabin said...

its beautiful...and such a lovely gift! Your mom will love it :)

__ said...

Beautiful cat and beautiful painting! Perfect gift :)

Lydie said...

He has beautiful eyes that cat! I love the airy texture that you gave to her fur. This will certainly be a much appreciated gift.
Merry Christmas to you and happy new year art.

Jeanette Jobson said...

Thank you Elena.

Kristin, I need to get the eyes just right in a piece or it never works for me.

Black bear cabin, I hope she will. Her eyesight isn't great but a simple composition and contrasts should help.

Yasemin, thanks for your kind words.

Lydie, the cat is unique and huge, but likely more fur than cat. :) Merry Christmas and happy creating.

vivien said...

it's lovely and she's going to be very happy - so much more personal than something bought from a shop

Black cats are so hard! ours just disappears into any shadow/darkness - all you see of him is a pair of gleaming eyes.

Lydie said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Love the variety of textures: glassy eyes, poofy fur. Beautiful; great gift!

Jeanette Jobson said...

Thanks Vivien, I hope so.

And yes, black cats are difficult to draw or paint, just as well I don't have a photo right now! :)

Tracy, thanks. The contrasts are what make a pet portrait work I believe.

debwardart said...

Great painting and I'm sure you mom will love it. Gee, 87 doesn't sound very old to me anymore; guess it's all relative, and changes the older we get! Congrats on the magazine article!

Jeanette Jobson said...

Thanks Deb. LOL its creeping up on all of us!

JANE MINTER said...

beautiful gift fr your mother .