Category: big cats

The Coffee Cup Critters aka the “Cuppa” Series

Posted on by abigailcossetteryan in Animals, artist, big cats, birds, brush pen, cats, colorwheel, Commissions, Equine Artist, Etsy, Fantasy Art, geek, Gouache, ink, inktense, Redbubble, sketches, tiger, watercolors, wildlife

I really love drawing animals. When I’m stuck for ideas, I find some reference pictures and draw an animal.

And then…..and then I give them a coffee cup.

I don’t know why.

It just makes me happy.

So, here they are (most of them, anyway). I hope they make you happy too!

If you aren’t a coffee person, think of them as giant, steaming, mugs of tea.

Several of these are up on my Redbubble shop already–the rest are pending! I’m also hoping to get some of them as stickers for sale on my Etsy. But that’s a project I’m *just* beginning. Let me know in the comments which ones you think would be the best stickers.

What animals would you like to see cherishing a nice steaming cuppa?

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Stormin’ Cat

Posted on by abigailcossetteryan in Animals, artist, big cats, brush pen, cats, Commissions, ink, Pet Portrait, watercolors

When I was a kid, we had a Maine Coon cat.

His name was Hero, and the city kids who happened through our suburban neighborhood were once heard identifying him as a bobcat.

He was a really awesome cat–a great hunter, and very affectionate. Of course, combine the two and you become the hunted. Hero was known to jump out of the bushes and attack our legs, or steal the hat off my head in the winter, or bear-hug you (with claws) if you tried to leave before he wanted you to.

There was an orange tomcat named OJ two doors down that sometimes came into Hero’s territory, and we’d hear the noisy posturing of the toms and let the dog out to chase off the interloper.

Our dog was a miniature black poodle–actually a pretty well trained little guy, trained by my mom and the indoor Siamese–and he would happily chase off OJ and then come back to touch noses with Hero.

There is something special about going outside and being sought out by the animals that live outdoors–just for companionship. I have fond memories of going out to play in the yard and being joined by our giant fluffy cat.

I should find a picture of him and paint it.

But this gray fluffball spoke to me, reminded me of him. Fear the might of the angry Maine Coon! He just looks like he should be named after Gandalf the Grey, Stormcrow, Lothspell, Mithrandir….just about any of those really work, I think.

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galleries

Posted on by abigailcossetteryan in acrylics, Animals, artist, ballet, Ballet, big cats, birds, brush pen, cats, Christmas, colorwheel, Commissions, dancer, Equine Artist, Etsy, fairy, floral, geek, Gifts, Holidays, home, home decor, horse, ink, inktense, mountains, owls, Pet Portrait, Redbubble, songbirds, tiger, watercolors, wildlife

At the end of August I collected the last of my pieces from the Firehouse Gallery and moved them all to–plus a lot more original pieces–to the Leesburg Town Hall. I was in such a rush I didn’t really get pictures of everything once they were on the walls–but they DO look good I think.

All the pieces are for sale, of course. I actually last minute switched out one of the works (my Blue Ridge Mountains) just so I could say that. The Blue Ridge stays with me!

I think one of the hardest things for me to do, as a artist, is put the brush down and let a piece be finished. I did that with the Blue Ridge, and it is just so pretty.

pure ultramarine

Here is the one picture I have of the arrangement in the town hall lobby:

It was also cool, then night we held an opening during First Friday Leesburg, to see so many of my products on display. Most of them owned by my very supportive mother–but some of them are mine.

I have these gorgeous painted boots you can see in the back there–not for riding anymore, if ever–perfect for a Kentucky Derby Party, or maybe a Steeple chase tailgate. I have a couple more pairs needing painting, I should probably paint them all up and then list them all at once instead of dripping them out into the world.

Also, you should know: Product pictures are a thing. There are moments when I think, “OH! I can totally do that.” and others, usually when I am holding a camera, when I realize that it is MUCH harder than it looks. Hats off to all you product picture people. Good work!

The exhibit runs to the end of Nov, you should swing by the Leesburg Town Hall if you happen through Northern VA. The downtown is incredibly cute, lots of great food and fun shops, plus, you know, this really awesome art exhibit by this artist you follow on the internet.

I’ve already started thinking about Christmas and I’ll be planning out time to paint. If you’re interested in a commission piece, they are shockingly affordable and make amazing presents. If you aren’t sure about something, just ask me.

You can hit me up here, or go straight to my Etsy shop and place an order there.

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gauche tigers

Posted on by abigailcossetteryan in Animals, artist, big cats, brush pen, cats, colorwheel, Conservation, Pet Portrait, Redbubble, tiger, watercolors, wildlife

I decided to investigate gauche. I was curious what made it different from watercolor, when most people say, “Oh, it’s like watercolors” when you ask what it is.

The binder is different than watercolor, so it’s just…different…more translucent? More…luminous.

tigre!

I borrowed some of my mother in law’s gauche, and I’ve been enjoying playing with it. Though, apparently it makes me want to paint tigers because that’s all I’ve done.

Yaaaaawn

I’m enjoying how different it is…and how the same. I’ve used the gauche for a base, and then finished the tigers with my brush pens to get really stark lines for the stripes. On the second tiger I also relied on masking fluid. Well….experimented with masking fluid.

I feel like masking fluid is a really interesting tool, and I’m enjoying messing around with it.

Oh, did you notice? I’m still trying to make a tiger half as awesome as my glamour leopard. I’m getting closer. Actually, both of these tigers came out pretty awesome, but are a different medium than the leopard so they still don’t go. I just forget about colored pencils. they still exist. I own them, even.

So how is everyone? September flashed past me at top speed. I cannoooooot believe October is this week.

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Big Cats

Posted on by abigailcossetteryan in Animals, artist, big cats, brush pen, cats, Etsy, Gifts, ink, Redbubble, Society 6, tiger, watercolors

One would think that with Disney’s The Jungle Book being a big part of my childhood, I might like tigers less. Shere Khan was only one of the most scary villains—though, simultaneously one of the most…noble? Not that hunting a child is noble, but his motivation was less self-serving than say, Scar’s. Actually, come to think of it…big cats are these terrifying, massively dangerous wild beasts…but it’s just hard not to like them.

Especially when big cats apparently have the same inability to resist cardboard boxes that their domestic cousins have and they are also openly fond of basking in the sun.

When I was a kid, I had this little plastic tiger cub who was classically named—Stripe. My brother had the same tiger, except white, and named Ghost Tiger—but we called him GT for short. Very creative names!

https://www.redbubble.com/people/ravenslanding/works/36640902-tiger-eye?

Tigers are very hard to paint, incidentally. I’ve really struggled to capture their bone structure. For some reason the leopard comes easier—perhaps because the leopard is more sleek?

I don’t have any childhood leopard memories, I think I might have had a plastic leopard at one point, but it was not as important a toy as Stripe.

I want to paint a series of big cats, glamourous big cats like these—and also more comedic big cats. Big Cats in Little Boxes, sounds fun and challenging!

Glamour Leopard is Glamorous

I have a hard time cartooning from scratch—but I’m trying to learn. I spent so much of my life wishing I could draw photo-realistic things that it’s been a huge mindset shift to accept that my strength lies elsewhere. It’s not that I can’t be photo-realistic, but the pieces that really shine with emotion and are fun to look at aren’t those. I’m better at whimsy, and better at evocative. And I’m finding that I like artwork that looks like art. Especially with so many amazing photographers out there, I don’t feel the need to duplicate their work, I’ll make it something new.

Both of these cats are done in colored pencil, over a watercolor background and inked blacks. They are both up in Redbubble, I haven’t put them in my Etsy shop yet, though. Do you think I should?

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