Matt and the Cat ...portrait in pastel by Kim Blair

Matt and the Cat

(12.5"x19" wax pastel)

Matt and the Cat was painted from a selfie sent to me via Matt's aunt.

Jasper, the gorgeous cat draped across Matt's shoulders looks huge! I'm not sure if Jasper is a large cat, or it's the perspective of the photo playing tricks, but one thing is for sure, Jasper is a loving playful companion. 

Painting from selfies, can be a challenge because there is often a distortion of the features as people hold their heads down or up depending on how they are looking at the camera.

Add balancing a cat on your shoulders and the you can see how this might change things!

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When I named this portrait, Matt and the Cat, it brought to mind the wonderful Dr. Seuss book The Cat in the Hat and the story of a mischievous cat who tries to entertain Sally and her brother one rainy day when they are confined to the house... hmmmmm sounds a bit like the past few months.

I wonder if Jasper is as mischievous as the cat in the book?

*If you received this blog post via email subscription the video will not be visible in your email. Please go directly to my art blog by clicking on the following link for kimblairartist.blogspot.com in order to view the short 2 minute video of the creation of this portrait.

Delivered... by Kim Blair

Matt and Jasper posing with their portraits

Instead of a curb side drop off I masked up and delivered Matt and The Cat to Matt and Jasper, staying long enough to help him hang the painting...a gift from his Aunt.

When Matt opened his door, there, in all his fluffy splendour was Jasper, who's size did not disappoint!

Jasper didn't need any coaxing to be included in the shot. Jumping onto Matt's lap he quickly arranging himself into a relaxed pose giving me a regal, confident gaze.

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(As I mentioned in my previous posting of Matt and The Cat, selfies photos often create foreshortening issues which are translated into the portrait when one paints true to the reference photo. Selfies are rich reference sources for artists and offer the painter a fun perspective.)