Cats are my dominant painting subject. They inspire me in so many ways. My daily routine is all about cats, from waking up to feed the street and stray cats in several feeding stations to working in the studio where there’s always a cat ready to model for a painting. I just love cats, and with the important role they play in my life, I think it was only natural that they became my primary painting subject. Just watching them doing the ordinary things they do, like eating, grooming, sleeping or playing, triggers me to grab a brush and paint. 

Behind Her Eyes, soft pastel, 12½ x 14” (31 x 35 cm)

Homey Meal, soft pastel, 16 x 15” (40 x 38 cm)

 

There is a wonderful quote by Ernest Hemingway that goes, ‘One cat just leads to another,’ and that is certainly the case here. Not just in my personal life but also in my art—one cat painting just leads to another painting. Some of my paintings celebrate the beauty of cats, while others have a deeper meaning than appears at first sight, like conveying a message or telling a story of a specific cat. I pay a lot of attention to cats’ gestures, body language, facial expressions, subtle signs and signals of non-verbal communication. 

 

Kittens
I call my kittens “little helpers.” I love having a little helper around in the studio. It distracts me while I work, which is good because it gives me small breaks to relax, smile and get back to work with a fresh eye.

Solar Energy, soft pastel, 17 x 16” (43 x 40 cm)

Yellow Bowl, soft pastel, 16 x 11½” (40 x 29 cm)

 

Artistically speaking, I feel that I aim to push the cat painting genre to new levels of sophistication. As for my viewers, I want them to feel the magic that I find in cats, and make them more compassionate to these fascinating animals.  

My Art in the Making Following

Reference Photo

Carefully going over my photos, I settled on this one to use as reference for the painting. I cropped the photo to a vertical rectangular format. I also took some artistic liberties to change the background and color scheme, as seen in my photo, to create more dramatic and exciting scenery.

 

This demonstration is meant to show you how I work on a painting from start to finish. You can use these steps as a guide for you to practice, and they can be applied to any subject matter.

Stage 1

Stage 1  Pencil Sketch

My painting began with this pencil drawing. I wanted to know the composition better and to get an idea of the value masses (lights, darks and mid-tones). This study will help guide me in my painting process.

Stage 2

Stage 2  Watercolor Study

This is a watercolor study that I did to figure out a color map that can work for my composition. To create depth, warm colors should be placed in the foreground and cool colors in the background. But in this case, I basically decided not to follow that rule and did exactly the opposite. After creating this preliminary watercolor study, I felt ready to paint the scene again with pastels. 

Stage 3

Stage 3 Line Drawing

A line drawing of the three cats composition was first done on separate paper and then transferred to my sanded paper with charcoal. Once I knew it was a good solid composition, the real fun could begin.  

Stage 4

Stage 4  Painting the Background

I first painted the large areas of darks in the far background and then the bluish areas of the midground and foreground.  

Studio Space
My studio is a standard sized room. I try to make the most of my space. I have a simple three-legged easel in the center of the studio, and some of my works are hung on the walls. My art supplies are never scattered, rather, I use separate containers and boxes to sort my materials.

Stage 5

Stage 5  Blocking in the Subject

Here, I started to block in the cats. I indicated the dark and light areas of their fur with loose strokes, letting the sienna color of my surface shine through. 

Stage 6

Stage 6  Adding Layers

I continued to work on the cats, painting all the nuances of color and value in the shadow areas of the white parts of their fur. I use a wide range of blue hues in varying values and touches of other colors, such as magenta violet, light turquoise, lavender and gray. 

Stage 7

Stage 7  Finishing Touches

Following, soft pastel, 19 x 13½” (48 x 34 cm)
I made some color refinements on the cats, adding touches of warm colors like violet, orange and burnt sienna. Then, I moved back to develop the background. I reestablished the darks in the background until I felt that I had achieved the desired mood. Pleased with the result, I signed the piece.