Brother Cat

Brother Cat
Oil on canvas, 4x6

We have a "cat" theme here today on the property! Michaela and Clint found mama cat's kittens in the rafters of one of the sheds!  Beau had started barking early today near the shed, and I thought it may be time to tell the kids that I suspected we had kittens!  Michael went scouting for them, to no avail.  With quite a bit more hunting, Michaela found them far out of Beau's reach!  They are beautiful - two gray calicos, and one spotted white, with orange.  I will have new little muses to paint in the coming months!  I have been wanting to explore color - namely, pushing the boundaries of color - and today I am starting that journey!  On this cat, brother to the mama (hence the name), I have used his real coloring as a "jumping off point".  He is white with orange spots, and that color is where I have painted it. Into these areas, I have stroked in reflected colors - squinting to see them, and then pushing them a little bolder.  I love paintings where the color is pushed, and as it is rather unnatural for me, I am making the effort to do exactly that!    This is painting number 5 in the 30 Day Painting Challenge, and 978 in 978 days for me :)