And today's cat is a gorgeous one! Sometimes I can't resist the opportunity to paint a cat I see, and this is one of those! And it sounds like I'm not alone, from what Ari's companion Robert writes~ and I'll have to edit this a bit to get it into the book at the end of our project, but I just couldn't cut anything out at this point! It all seems important~
And I did love painting the pale colors of Ari's fluffy coat- and those EYES!!!
8x8 acrylic on panel
"Here's a good photo of my beautiful cat Ari. He's been photogenic all his life, everyone comments on how gorgeous he is. He's going on 15 years old this April but he's still a cat athlete. A large fellow, he's a 15 pound Color Point Longhair, aka Street Siamese. When he was a kitten he was about 3/4 fur and weighed maybe half a pound in my hand, you could pet him and keep going deeper and deeper without finding the kitten inside! Now he's grown into his silky locks and a handsome fellow with leading-man looks.
His occupation is Emotional Support Cat, for which he's certified. He's actually also a physical therapist who gives purring and fuzzy tummy treatment to his disabled human. He will lay directly on a bad joint and warm and purr on it, healing it. He also interrupts nightmares and depression with aggressive affection, but politely leaves me alone if I'm happily writing or drawing.
Of course he's also my favorite model and muse! My sketchbooks are full of little life sketches as he will never pose longer than two minutes even sound asleep. He's also inspired fantasy novels with cat protagonists including the sabertooth cat novel we're editing now. It's said that a cat never sleeps on a bad manuscript!
We have been happy together for almost 15 years and I have high hopes he may be one of the great longevity story cats, since he's still a cat athlete. His belly skin sags from age and he darkened but he still runs around yelling at the top of his lungs, plays, bounces on the bed and does kitty olympics regularly, sometimes several times a day. He's not bony either, just muscled like a panther and lean. He has very silky hair, one of his amazing cool points is that his fur kept that kitten softness.
He sheds Cat Hairs of Inspiration in your direction though I'm sure you have a good supply of your own.
1 comment:
Oh wow! You caught him so perfectly. His look, that sweet,wise, loving look is so wonderful. That's him, that's my Ari boy. Wow.
I wish I could do this. I was up all night juggling budget, but I'm going to have to pass on buying it. Someone will give this painting a good home. He's so amazingly beautiful. I'm just happy to have the real one snuggling on my lap today.
Thank you for painting my Ari. No one's captured his depth, warmth and beauty the way you have. My hat's off to you and as a cat painter I have to study your works, this is amazing! Your style is very different from mine, bolder and more painterly. It's a different medium too of course.
Going to be watching this all month, they are so fantastic! But you've just done the best of them!
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