Friday, March 29, 2024
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Daily Sketch: Bella Stole My Chair

Charcoal sketch of cat sleeping
“Bella Stole My Chair”, charcoal pencil, 9.5″ x 6.5″ © Bernadette E. Kazmarski

I turned around and there was Bella, relaxed and napping, as if I hadn’t just stood up. So I sketched her. And worked standing up.

. . . . . . .

What was I sketching on this date?

The Marvelous Toy, 2014
ink sketch of three cats playing
“The Marvelous Toy”, ink drawing pen with brush marker, 10″ x 7″ © Bernadette E. Kazmarski

Giuseppe in the center, Bean trying to edge in from the bottom and Mr. Sunshine pondering the mechanics of the situation from the top, three great minds literally pull apart The Marvelous Toy.

I came home from conferences last year with lots of goodies for the kitties, including two food puzzle toys—containers they could easily roll around and play with that could hold a treat or two to give them incentive to play. It’s a way to give them a little activity and environmental enrichment during their long and boring days.

One was a “Fish Bowl”, a clear plastic sphere with the top cut open and a flat wide rim about 1/3 up from the bottom so that it could rock back and forth but not flip over. Kitty can see and smell the treat inside the bowl and work hard to get it out of there. All Four came to work on it while Mama Mimi watched from inside a low flat box, but Giuseppe took it over. It took him nearly a minute to get the first treat, and each successive treat took less and less time until by the fourth treat he had learned to flip it over and reach in if the treat hadn’t fallen out, and by treat five he could reach in and get it out while barely moving the fish bowl. No one else had a chance.

Then I got the Kong treat toy, which is the one here. It’s another sphere that screws apart so you can put treats inside, and its uneven surface makes it roll in unexpected directions and eventually a treat will come out of it. I placed it in the tub to keep it contained and Giuseppe again kept everyone else away while he managed to get two treats out. I put about ten more into it and went to get some work done, and in ten minutes it was empty, sitting near Giuseppe. I decided I was going to get something out of this so I put two more treats in it and sketched them.

A few minutes later Bean came walking out of the bathroom holding the toy with a tooth in the hole for the treats to exit, set it on the landing and they all went after it until it rolled down the steps, fell open, and I’m not sure who got that treat. I hope it was Bean.

The whole operation took about 20 minutes. I think I need more complicated treat toys for these guys. Giuseppe does not get tired of things like this, and when it comes to food they are very competitive so they’ll keep at it if they smell a treat.

. . . . . . .

Spiral for Two, 2013
marker sketch of cats
“Spiral for Two”, brush marker, 6.5″ x 5″ © B.E. Kazmarski

Mimi and Giuseppe have been cuddling in the sweetest ways each day. He is so much larger than her, and Mimi looks like the kitten.

Here they are nose to nose, as if they each curl out from a center point, and perhaps they do.

And then I also decided to reverse it…makes me think of some of my block prints.

sketch of two cats
“Spiral for Two in Reverse”, marker and Photoshop.

. . . . . . .

Through the Curtains, 2012
ink sketch of cat looking through curtain
Peeking Through the Curtains, ink marker © B.E. Kazmarski

Mewsette sits on the shelf in front of the window, curtains pushed aside so she can see the neighborhood. She’s a little extra puffy, and likely she spies another cat out there, somewhere.

. . . . . . .

Daily Photo: I Could “Daily Sketch” You, 2013
black cat with colore drawing pencils
Mimi looks at my pencils, then at me.

Mimi looks at my pastel pencils, then at me.

“I wonder how you’d look if I sketched you in blue, or purple or pink,” Mimi says. “I just might give it a try.”

Guess I pushed the non-representational colors too far for someone. she didn’t follow through with her threat, and I’m kind of glad. I mean, it would be totally cool to have a kitty who could draw, but I’m not sure I’d like how I look. Perhaps that was her point, too.


Click here to see other daily sketches.

For a gallery of the ones available for sale, visit my Etsy shop in the “Cat Art and Prints” section.

Read about the reason for the daily sketches in Three Years of Daily Sketches, Awards and Collections.

And download your free desktop wallpaper calendar for computer or mobile, usually based on a daily sketch.

"Warm Winter Sun" desktop calendar 2560 x 1440 for HD and wide screens. "Rolling Around" desktop calendar 2560 x 1440 for HD and wide screens.
“Warm Winter Sun” desktop calendar 2560 x 1440 for HD and wide screens. “Rolling Around” desktop calendar 2560 x 1440 for HD and wide screens.

"Feline Style Sampler" book of sketches and portraits.

A collection of 34 images of feline artwork

Feline Style Sampler

Daily sketches, illustrations, commissioned portraits all in a small coil-bound gift book.

Click here or on the image to read more

or find this book in my Etsy shop and on Amazon.com.


Gifts featuring cats you know! Portraits of Animals on Etsy.

AfterDinnerNap-Etsy


Subscribe to The Creative Cat e-newsletter for specials on exclusively feline-themed art and merchandise.

 


All images used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission. Please ask if you are interested in using one in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of this image or a product including this image, check my Etsy shop to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.


© 2015 | www.TheCreativeCat.net | Published by Bernadette E. Kazmarski

Weekly schedule of features:
Sunday: Essays, Pet Loss, Poetry, The Artist’s Life
Monday: Adoptable Cats, TNR & Shelters
Tuesday: Rescue Stories
Wednesday: Commissioned Portrait or Featured Artwork
Thursday: New Merchandise
Friday: Book Review, Health and Welfare, Advocacy
Saturday: Your Backyard Wildlife Habitat, Living Green With Pets, Creating With Cats
And sometimes, I just throw my hands in the air and have fun!

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Bernadette

From health and welfare to rescue and adoption stories, advocacy and art, factual articles and fictional stories, "The Creative Cat" offers both visual and verbal education and entertainment about cats for people who love cats, pets and animals of all species.

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