"Kitten" Griffin

Pen & Wash    Bessie, GRIFFIN, Tarka, Melvin at 7 weeks   8" x 12"

(Photo & Kits:   France Bauduin)

Above is the main man (Griff) as a kitten, mixed up with his fellow litter mates in June 2012.  It was a challenge to see if I could do a clowder of kittens.   Not perfect but it captures the essence.

Colours?   Blacks ARE very blue, and photo exaggerates same.
Actual kit colours:  Bessie, black;  Griffin, gold tabby;  Tarka, dark grey tabby;  Melvin, black and white.

It amused me that in both litters there's only one girl, she's black, and both girls have similar names:  Bessie above and Bella from the current litter - names that were chosen by their new homes.

Enjoy!

Bella & Leo

Bella, all black, and Leo, a silver tabby      Pen & Wash    9" x 12"

(Thank you France for original photo!)

Portraits of two of the kits in post below, snuggling with Griff.

Potentially tres cute but wash didn't work.  My fault since not done on true w'color paper.   It looked cool before I added the color.   I did a bit too much detail on Leo, which you can't see now.   In reality I prefer pen to compliment outline - not outline every detail.    Hey, more lessons learned.    It can all be done again.

So that's now TWO in the 'waiting for a do-over' queue!

Enjoy!

Big Bro Griff - a work in progress

Pen & Watercolor   9" x 12" - 1st sketch

Pen & Colour Pencil    9" x 12" - 2nd sketch

Big Bro Griff with his siblings, Merlin, Bella, Leo and Nevil

(thanks to France Bauduin for the original photo and many others)

Griffin is 6 months, his siblings just 4 weeks.   Yes, they do share the same Mum and Dad.   Since the kits' birth, Griffin has been fascinated and mother Laila has always allowed him to come close and be a part of their growing up.   Now they're in the playful stage and the kits adore their gentle giant of a bro - obviously the feeling is mutual.   The kits all have homes waiting (im)patiently for them...and dear Griff will sorely miss them when they leave.

As for the sketches, easy to see neither is complete.  However they give a sense, I hope, of Griff's obvious contentment with the kittens.


N.B.  France & I became email "friends" a year go, and met this summer in Montreal while she was on vacation and visiting family.  She is an amazing artist specialising in cats plus incredibly generous with news and photos of the kittens and her permanent residents - being Griff, Laila, Spookie, Uni and Apollo - not forgetting Mark, her husband!

Enjoy!

Happy Mother's Day

With special thanks to France, Mum Laila and kittens, Tarka and Griffin, who will be 26 days old on May 13th.

And, of course, Happy Mother's Day!

Enjoy

JEN's UP!

but had to call Mum to get down!

NOT a happy camper!    Serves her right for figuring out how to get onto banned territory!  


Bookcase is 7 feet high.  Contents pretty much as shown.  Jen sits behind "Jen Blockers", picture frames fixed to front edge to PREVENT attempts off dining room table.   Kept her off for 3 years.   Then tall furniture moved closer and she spotted a 3" wide "back door".   Up she went!  Then couldn't get down.  She had to ASK for help.   She hates doing that!

Route now blocked.    For how long, I dunno.   Last year, for top of armoir, I created an impenetrable Jen barrier.  One night we were ignoring her, so she leaped up and over it.   I caved in.  She now owns the space.

Enjoy!

A Not Much Day

Jenny from life - sleeping in "her" chair

watercolor          6" x 10"

A not much day:  not much free time, not much energy.   This experiment squeezed into half an hour.   Never worked on Strathmore (I think it is) and fell madly in love with it's smooth surface for w'color.  Later on blocked out front view of round cow..

As for Jen, I really should get more live sketches of her.   Difficult to do since if she sees me drawing or pastelling or painting, then she's just gotta be on top of what I'm doing.  If I manage to sneak part of the picture out from under her to work on, she'll nose-nudge my hand, or try to grab the paintbrush in her teeth.  So I'm real happy when she goes to sleep in the corner.

enjoy!

    

"Jenny & Her Goose"       pastel           12" x 18"

The top of the armoir is Jenny-stan - her very own stomping ground.   A long jump up too.   She shares it with the wooden goose, an antique duck decoy, a plush hawk, a plant (fake) and a tortoise lamp.  The lighting is from below, a lamp on a sidetable.   I love the way her toes curl over the edge.

 

You can't see the hawk or the tortoise here but you get the idea.   A pretty good fake plant, huh?

Enjoy!

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Aha! JENNY!

"Aha! JENNY!"        pastel         12" x 18"

It's "Aha!" because I'm pleased.  At last.  

However, as I did it I kept wondering why I'd chosen a pic with such a weird perspective distortion of the hanging paw.  Now I'm real glad I stuck with it.   The pose is a Jenny standard:  perched as high as possible with one paw draped over the edge.  In fact in my mother's room (which abounds with Jenny photos!) about half are this pose....

Enjoy!

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Jenny Today

Jenny 26/3         pastel         10" x 18"

Well, that's what she was doing!    Am still puzzling with how to pastel AND use her real coat colors, being grey and white.   I'll try again another day!

Enjoy!

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Passing Grade

A Blue Gee         pastel        18" x 18"

Today's Jenny               pastel             12" x 18"

In both there are flaws but enough passes to make it onto the page!

Enjoy!

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Jenny & Flying Mane

"Jenny"              pastel              8" x 11"

On her favorite chair, her morning sleep - preceded by her apres breakfast snooze and to be followed by her 4 hour afternoon nap.   I do believe the lass is putting on weight!

BELOW - testing out new color crayons, Prismacolor, the obvious choice as a subject was Fan's horse with flying mane.  Not finished but gives you a sense of the potential for detailed work.

Flying Mane             Prismacolor Pencils          5" x 7"

Sketchbook

Today & Before       Pastel/Color pencil         sizes various

Clockwise from top left:  Jenny - Boy - Unknown Pooch - Jenny pretending to be a plate

The boy is from about 10 days ago when I was working on the Suq in Muscat, the other 3 are from today.   Lots of photographs too of Jenny with legs all twisted up.   May choose one of those for tomorrow.

Enjoy

Blue Jen

"Blue Jen"        pastel          10" x 12" (incl tape)

Jen was lying on blue chair in corner.   She's really grey and white but that's not what this is about.   Initially, drew her but no chair.   Tonight, when I added chair, I had to guess how that shaft of light fell on chair and her.  I think it's about right.  Also note size ratio rather off...she looks the size of a medium dog!

The photo is to show you just how cruddy the surrounds can be pre-edit.   Photo Verité I call it - no crops, no photoshop.

She sat and watched me finish this, and is now asleep on my work table.   The good life for Sweet Jen.

Enjoy!

Jenny Looks at Me

"Jenny Looks at Me"   Pastel   6" x 10"

A good day for pastel.   I did this from life, she was lying on the bed, a lovely stretched out shape.   As soon as I sat down, sketchbook in hand, she tilted her head backwards.   "WHAT are you doing?" was the look.   Seconds later the head rolled back in the other direction.   I JUST caught it.  She's a sweet girl is my lass.

Enjoy

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Sketchbook

A few from the past.
Clockwise from top left:  Jenny-Jenny-Jack-Rockie

Enjoy!

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"In the frame"

This is not about dear Minou - his original post Nov 10th - but how he is framed.

Outer 'grey' frame size is 12" x 16" - and it's really a silver patina.
First mat is white wi bevel edge
Second mat, a brown textured cardstock.

I gotta say this is so much much better than original mat crop which was 8"x10" and rather bland.  PURE LUCK that it ended up this way!   So I'm thankful I made an unrecoverable error in the Minou picture...and cropping it out became essential.  Also (phew) I know how to cut mats, so it was relatively simple and economical.  

Enjoy


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Jenny in the Light

Pastel 8" x 12"

She was lying on our bed, staring out the window and the light was streaming in.   It's her favorite window since there are TREES, LEAVES and SQUIRRELS.

Enjoy


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GK or Grey Kitty

Color Pencil 8"x10"

His real name is Grey Kitty.   But somehow that was just too feminine for this boy from the wild.   While taking photos I re-christened him and the owner loved it too - so introducing GK.   Yup, he's a tough guy and the look seems to say "don't mess with me".

He and Minou will be framed tomorrow and off to their home midweek...

Enjoy


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Minou walks in....

Color Pencil  8"x10"

A while ago I posted this same pose in pastel.   Very pleased with this...now have to do Minou's stablemate, GK or Grey Kitty.   They are both dark grey cats, Minou has more fur.

Enjoy!

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Keller

Pastel  15"x19"

It's been a saga!   But here is the final...who now will go under glass and home tomorrow.  Note that the colors here are correct for his coat - a more muted brown and black tabby.

Keller was christened thus as a kitten.  In his new adoptive home he was so intensely concentrating (one thinks!)  on his new environment he just didn't "listen" - call him or speak to him, and he just ignored it all.   So, "Let's call him Keller!"   A few weeks later he chose to listen  . . .  but he kept the name.

A very large bundle of love remembered with great affection.
 
Enjoy!


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