Results tagged “cat”

Pumpkins 2009 (mleiv.com)
Medium: Pumpkin Size: N/A
This year's pumpkins. Skinny cat made an appearance on the small pumpkin (10 minute carve), alongside the Locked Maze laughter pumpkin (8 hours carve). The latter is sadly quite literally made from my blood, sweat, and tears. The inside was bright red by the time I finished after carving up my fingers in addition to gourd, x-acto knife NOT being the ideal tool for this type of carving.

Some other angles of the Difficult Pumpkin: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=4445312&id=127815620329

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2006: http://mleiv.com/mt/art/crafts/pumpkins_2006/
2007: http://mleiv.deviantart.com/art/Halloween-Pumpkins-2007-69206355
2008: http://mleiv.com/mt/art/crafts/pumpkin_2008/
Pumpkin 2008 (mleiv.com)
Medium: Pumpkin Size: 12"
I am gonna try to take a twilight picture tomorrow if the pumpkin lives that long. My camera sucks at really low-light shots like this. :P

The image was a little too complex and the carving was a little too clumsy on this guy for my tastes. I prefer the traditional clean-cut, no midtone chunky cats of years past. But this design will make a nice painting later. :)

I was a highwayman this year (went to my costume ball on Saturday). Inspired by Black Adder's "Amy and Amiability." The event photographer was a French aristocrat and I swear, if I was socially well-adjusted in any way at all, dammit, I would have snuck up behind him with my pistol and demanded he hand over all his valuables. *sigh* Missed opportunities.



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2006: http://mleiv.com/mt/art/crafts/pumpkins_2006/
2007: http://mleiv.deviantart.com/art/Halloween-Pumpkins-2007-69206355
2009: http://mleiv.com/mt/art/crafts/pumpkins_2009/
[Caesar]
Christmas with Caesar
When I was eleven I got a cat named Caesar. He was a tiny kitten when he came into my life, but he quickly grew into a giant, fluffy gray tabby. He was an accidental addition to my life: I had been begging my mother for a cat for years, and when she finally said yes, I immediately came home with a little spotted female kitten from a friend's house. And my mom took in Caesar the same day from my older brother and his wife. It was an awkward moment. She wanted me to pick one, but they were kittens and I couldn't reject one. So they both stayed. And the female cat hated me almost immediately. But Caesar became the love of my life. At night, I would sneak him inside - even though it was forbidden - and let him sleep on my bed. I would clean up his kitten messes, and brush his tangled fur when he became a quarrelsome tom. I snuck him tuna and old clothes to sleep on out in the garage. He adored me and would rub against me with his whole body, just begging to be patted on the head or scratched under the chin.

Eventually the female cat had a tiny litter of her own. And a few months after that, she and her kittens disappeared. My mother told me they ran away. My sisters told me they went to the pound. I believed my sisters. But secretly I didn't care. As long as I had my fluffy Caesar I was happy.

As he got older, Caesar got pretty dirty. He lost a good chunk of one ear. Then his eye got pretty infected. I cried a lot and petted him more. He drooled on me and purred his heart out. Then one day he, too, disappeared. He was only a year old. My mother told me he ran away. My sisters told me he went to the pound. I didn't believe any of them. I knew he had died somewhere, all alone, fighting out his little half-feral tom life.

I never asked for another cat. My parents were relieved. They decided it was just a phase. My mother had never really understood the whole pet idea in the first place. Animals were more of a functional contribution to the farm in her mind. She hugged me and told me I was allergic to cats anyway. I didn't believe her. I was heartbroken without my Caesar. My high school years were lonely and bereft of his furry company. I kept the few pictures I had. For a long time I secretly kept his name tag in a little jewelry box. I would take it out and remember how much I loved him and how dirty and sick he had been at the end. And I hated myself because I hadn't taken better care of him. He was my best friend and the thing I loved most in the world, and I had let him slowly be eaten away by the cruelties of animal life because I was too young and stupid to know how to protect him.

Twelve years later I finally gave in and got another little kitten. His name was Orpheus, and he was an accidental addition too. I went to the Humane Society with my Significant Other and we came home with a little black female. And she hated me immediately. But the next day I found little Orpheus, the size of my hand, abandoned, crippled from hunger, and near death. And I couldn't say no, so home he came. He was a little wobbly at first, and jumped around the house like a bunny as he struggled to make his legs work again. But soon he could jump and snuggle and climb under the blankets and purr against my chest. And he was the love of my life. He adored me and would rub against me with his whole body, just begging to be picked up and held.

Orpheus grew up big and strong and I got him all his shots and the best food I could find, even though I couldn't afford it. I got him fixed when he was old enough and then I took him in for antibiotics after all the fights he got into anyway. I took him into the Kitty E.R. when his liver failed and paid $600 from my last credit card to keep him alive. I smuggled him his favorite blanket and fed him his favorite treats. And I thought, when he dies I don't think I'll ever ask for another cat. Because I'll be heartbroken.

But he got better. And he sleeps on my bed every night, even though I am allergic to cats after all. And I drool a little on him (because of the allergies) and he purrs his heart out. And even my little female cat comes around, snuggling up in the end and deciding she might like me too. And I look down at them and think, "I love you, Caesar."

Maybe I can never change the short, wretched life I gave my beloved friend, but I am making it up to him the only way I know how. By doing all the things for Orpheus that I should have done for him. And all the love that I give my little cats is the love that I owe my childhood cat. I miss him.

Harlequin and Cat (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 11X14"
I am thinking of having this be my Black Cat Ball charity auction item this year. As always, I am afraid of being the one piece no one bids on.
Gold Orpheus (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 11X14"
Another painting of my cat. This one looks more like him than the last. Except that he really isn't that brown, haha.
Orpheus on Cement (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 11X14"
Just another practice painting. This is my cat, orpheus. I can tell I need a lot more practice drawing (realistic) cats. But the cement looks great, IMO! ;)
Patch of Sun (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 11X14"
Modeling paste, ceramic stucco, pumice gel, glass beads. A bit of gold paint and gloss top coat. I didn't use a guide sketch or color comp (my normal process), and just kinda threw the thing together on the paper.
Tabby Cat (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 9X12"
A quick experimental painting that I liked a lot. It was made using thick gel medium and a final wash of black wiped into the crevices.
Xmas Cats 2006 #2 (mleiv.com)
Medium: Oil Size: 16X20"

This is another take on my failed 2006 christmas card. I started this one *before* the other painting, but because it was in oil, it took considerably longer. I like it a lot more, however.

Cat Card 2006 (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 12X16"

This was supposed to be my 2006 Holiday card but I just don't think it photographed well enough to make a good card. It's actually a very pretty painting, but the transparent layers look too flat, and the green came out too blue, and the glossy bits just make the painting look lumpy and dull.

Pumpkins 2006 (mleiv.com)
Medium: Pumpkin Size: N/A

I got to carve pumpkins this year! Yay! The cat is my previous skinny cat pumpkin design, rendered beautifully using one of those $5 electric carving blades. What a great idea that was! And I roasted pumpkin seeds after with sage and black truffle olive oil. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm!

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2007: http://mleiv.deviantart.com/art/Halloween-Pumpkins-2007-69206355
2008: http://mleiv.com/mt/art/crafts/pumpkin_2008/
2009: http://mleiv.com/mt/art/crafts/pumpkins_2009/

Drip (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 20X20"

The second attempt at painting this cat. I like this one much more, although there are still minor flaws that bug me. The paper on the foreground worked out really well, as you can see in this detail:

Luxury (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 20X20"

Another cat painting. This one has a lot of texture and a slight gilt over the top. I didn't like the black cat option as much as I thought I would, so I think I am going to try one with orange next. Oh - and here is my little inspiration cuddling with the painting in progress:

Ace with Luxury

Gray Cat (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 11X15"

This was a birthday present for my significant other. The quote is from Umberto Eco's Name of the Rose, but it also references All Cats Are Grey by the Cure (his favorite band). The text was created using a gloss over a matte varnish and it is only visible in certain lights.

Cat Holiday Card 2005 (mleiv.com)
Medium: Pencil/Photoshop Size: 5X8"

The inside read: "Looks like it's just the pear tree this year."

Buy this card on cafepress! and 20 pk.

Bast Wishes Holiday Card 2004 (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 11X14"

I made this to be my 2004 holiday card but chickened out at the last minute and made the tree one instead. I like it a lot, but I was afraid that No. 1) the silver would not turn out, and No. 2) the Christians on my list would freak out and report me to the authorities as some Satan-worshipping pagan godless freak. What can I say? Old age must be softening me up...

Three Cats (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 9X13"

I love this painting but it feels more like a wrapping paper graphic than a proper wall-hung piece of art.

Cat Watching the Moon (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 16X16"

This was created as an experiment to see how I could get acrylic to have more of that dry brush quality in oils. It has a lot of texture and several layers of colors. I loved it so much I put it up in my front room.

Ninja Cats (mleiv.com)
Medium: Acrylic Size: 15X15"

A set of four mathing paintings of one of my stylized cat designs: Ninja Cat. It was meant to be a cat sleeping on a rug, but - let's face it - it looks more like Mortal Kombat Kitty.

Dresser Top (mleiv.com)
Medium: Birch and Wood Stain Size: N/A

The top of my egyptian-style dresser. The cartouches contain the names of my cats. The other hieroglyphs spell out "cats" in egyptian, which so far as I can tell is pronounced "MEOW."

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