Enter the Crows

Over the past month or so crows have begun to once again make themselves known in my paintings.  Usually it can be months or even years before I make a connection between the types of animals or other symbols that are appearing in my art and what is going on in my life at the time these symbols show up.  I guess I will have to wait and see what the crows mean.  I completed the piece below a couple of weeks ago.  Lately I have been using oil pastel along with acrylic more and more in my paintings and that is no exception with this piece.  This work measures 11 x 14 inches and is on masonite panel.  It is currently available for purchase in my etsy shop.

 

Bunny Express

Easter is my favourite holiday of the year.  I can’t’ get enough of the cute bunnies, sheep and little birds that are on display everywhere.  In keeping with the cute animal theme of Easter I painted the “Bunny Express”.  What could be better than getting a free ride on a sweet, dependable rabbit?  This painting is currently available for purchase.

 

 

Circus Dachsund II

A couple of years ago I did a circus themed painting of a Dachshund dog that I really liked.  Unfortunately my scanner has this odd talent for putting subtle vertical lines through images that have a lot of dark colours which turned out to be the case with this painting.   So my hopes of making prints of this painting were dashed.  However I was not to be deterred – instead I came up with a revamped version of the old painting with a different colour scheme and another adorable weiner doggie.  I also added a very thin wash of burnt umber to give the painting a more worn, antique type of feel to it.  I really like the way this piece turned out.  It is acrylic on a pine wood block, measuring 5.5 x 5.5 inches and has been sold.

 

The Birthday Boy

Something that is so wonderful about kitties is that they all seem to have different personalities and expressions.  My beloved Ferdinand would often have what appeared to be a very grumpy look about him and yet I just knew he was actually very content.  The constant loud purring was a dead giveway!  Sigh…I still miss him so much.  In the spirit of Ferdinand I created The Birthday Boy.  While he appears a bit grumpy this cool orange tabby is secretly pleased to be the center of attention, even if it means wearing a silly hat.  This guy was painted with acrylic on watercolour paper and is 4×6 inches.  He has been sold.

 

Winter Hedgehog

Winter Hedgehog

The past few days have seen some super cold temperatures here so I needed to paint something that reflected the wintery weather.  Now I don’t know if hedgehogs get cold but I couldn’t get the idea of a scarf-wearing hedgehog out of my mind.  So here is the Winter Hedgehog.  It is acrylic on wood and is sold.

 

The Happy Orange Tabby

I know there are lots of tabby cat lovers out there just like me.  With that being the case it seemed like the time was right to paint another tabby.  This guy is very happy, with his tail waving in the air.  It is acrylic on canvas and measures 8 x 10 inches.  The painting is sold.

 

Winter Has Arrived

Okay, so I haven’t felt like blogging lately and if you follow this blog at all you will know that is pretty typical of me.  The past two months have been difficult with Ferdinand being ill and then passing away.  The arrival of fall/winter isn’t helping either.  The last few days have seen it get really cold here and the snow has arrived.  I did however take a cute photo of my very sweet dog Avery which is sure to help cheer up anyone.  Even with his big Collie fur coat Avery doesn’t seem too keen on  the early arrival of winter.  If he could have spoken he would have told me to stop the photo taking and let him in!!

 

Ferdinand (1994 – October, 2008)

 

“Mr. Happy”

Mr. Happy

Lately I have had kitties on the brain, seemingly more than usual.  I am quite fond of tuxedo cats in all of their white and black cuteness so I decided it was time for a new one to enter the world.  Meet Mr. Happy!  He is a primitive style tuxedo just waiting for you to take him into your home and spoil him with lots of treats.  The painting is acrylic on canvas and measures 8 x 10 inches.  It has been sold!

 

My Beloved Orange Cat

About four weeks ago disaster struck my beloved orange kitty, Ferdinand. One minute he was well and happy and the next he had a large open wound the size of the circumference of a coffee cup on his side. At the time I had no idea what happened but I immediately flew into panic-hysteria mode at the horror of what I was seeing. Fortunately I had the prescence of mind to pack him into his carrier and head to the emergency vet clinic straight away. I was told by the vet that he needed to have emergecy surgery to get the wound stitched up. I was very worried about this prospect since Ferdinand is at least 14 years old and you never know how well an elderly cat will handle surgery. There really was no choice in the matter though since he needed to be sewn up! I nervously waited in the waiting area while the surgery was performed, going out of my mind with worry. After a couple of hours the vet told me the surgery went well and my baby was waking up. That was a relief to hear! After a while the staff brought him out to me, completely bandaged up with instructions for medications and the bandage change schedule. The vet warned me that the wound was very grotesque so he gave a good bandage so I wouldn’t have to look at it – I was so thankful for that since I am seriously very squeamish about these sorts of things. I finally arrived home at midnight and took Ferdinand up to bed with me. I only slept an hour that night – I was so consumed with worry not knowing how well he was handling the surgery and if his stitches were going to hold (the vet warned me they could pop due to the nature of the wound). Gradually over the next week Ferdinand came back to his normal self. I knew the tide had turned when I caught him grooming the dog’s snout (one of his favourite activities).

It has been about four weeks since this all happened and I can now report that he is almost totally recovered. His stitches are out and the only thing left is for the wound to completely heal over and the fur to grow back. The poor guy has been driven nearly crazy by the itchiness and irritation of the wound after about week one when the really big bandage came off. He was so naughty about trying to lick the wound and scratch it with his hind legs! I was going nuts trying to keep him from doing any damage to himself so I ended up making him a special outfit that would keep him from having access to the wound area. The outfit is pretty rudimentary but I did end up embroidering a little fish on the back area since “Seafood Medley” is one of his favourite food flavours. Here are a couple of photos of him in his outfit. Don’t worry I normally don’t put him on the kitchen counter, it was only so I could photo him without him wandering off!