Cat on a Hot Color Palette

                                                  
"Cat Pose 1"
5 x 8 in
Chalk pastel and watercolor on paper
Click here to view Etsy listing
"Cat Pose 2"
5 x 8 in
Chalk and watercolor on paper
Click here to view Etsy listing

Another heat wave in San Diego county... at this point, I've accepted the fact that I'm going to be hot and miserable until my second child arrives.  So, in between painting sessions on a bigger acrylic piece, I took the time to play with some hot colors and loose cat figures.  We have a couple of cats who are quite, ahem, large, and when they pose I like to take pictures of their forms for later exercises.
 
 


I don't use this color scheme often, but I always like it in other artists' works.  There were originally four pieces, but two were duds so I decided to toss them.  It was just a play session, so having a couple of decent mini-paintings come out was nice.  Actually, to have anything artistic to show after these last eight months or so is a pleasant surprise, since in addition to physical discomfort I've had a lot of trouble tapping into right brain mode.  I'm sure it has to do with all the hormone changes, and hope that annoying symptom will go away too in the next few months. 



Knowing when to toss a painting is hard, because as an artist, it's always tempting to find something to change in order to save it.  One clear sign I need to put something into the fail pile is when the materials no longer support the intention of the piece.  In this case, I wanted to have a bright background with soft, smeared pastel on the watercolor.  In the two failures (which were of the same pose), I had done too much blending and covering, and it was starting to look like mud.  Strathmore watercolor paper isn't the toughest when it comes to chalk pastel, so I knew I had to let those attempts go.

I put most of my bright-colored animal art on Etsy, so if you like these, please check out my Etsy store:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/nikihilsabeck

For more bright colors, stop by my new "Pitchers and Pots" gallery on my fine art website:
http://www.nikihilsabeck.com/art-gallery/pitchers-and-pots/
 

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