99 Cats and A Bird

Harry
10×10″ Acrylic on Canvas

10×10″ Acrylic on Canvas

Can you tell which Doctor I grew up watching?
Now hopefully if the use of the Tardis as a scratching post isn’t enough of a clue maybe the long ugly brown striped scarf will give a clue to who this little fellow represents.

This one was requested by K. Hutson Price. Who not only was kind enough to give me some ideas on what to paint, but is also a wonderful writer. A cruel and evil writer, but a talented one. she writes these wonderful stories and lets me read just enough to burn images into my head and then I have to wait a very long time to get to read the rest of them. Cause she can’t write like normal people. No she has to write in a way that creates full detailed images in a way that brands them on a person’s brain. The complete stories I have read have also branded themselves on my brain, but because I got to read all of those (only because they were published in a book already or were read at a convention), they don’t keep me up at night thinking about them. Actually even getting to hear the complete stories don’t keep me from thinking about them at random moments in my day. Bell, Book and Candle still sticks with me. But I can’t think of a way to illustrate that one in order to get it out of my head. But anyway, we need more writers like her that bring you into their worlds with just words like that.
But enough about her, this is supposed to be about the art - isn’t it nifty?

Murphy 10×10 Acrylic on Canvas

Prints available.

Morpheus 10×10″ Acrylic on Canvas

This painting was requested by Katie. She did a version a few weeks back and wanted me to do one as well. Here is Katie’s…

Now Katie isn’t the only one I am taking requests from for the 99 Cats and a Bird Series. I have only completed 18 paintings (yes, I am behind on getting them posted), and I am running out of idea. So please send me ideas. If I use your idea, I will send you a free print of the painting. These are for charity, so please help. Which reminds me I owe Micheal a print of Edison.

Rules for Entry
1. Each cat is to have some sort of cultural refrence, it can be pop culture, historical, literary, mythological ect…
2. Explain it to me, I might not get it right away and I need a refrence if I am going to create the right visual cues for the painting. I might not have read the same things, and if I did I suffer from migrains - if the pain hasn’t killed off the brain cells the preventative medications are working on it.
3.Provide me with a working return email, so that if I use your idea, I can contact your for a mailing address.
4. email me your ideas to melia at bemusedart.com and include 99Cats Idea in the subject.

Some of the ones that you haven’t seen yet are Pollyanna, Murphy (as in Murphy’s Law). I am working on getting them up….REALLY.

Also I am only $140 shy of having all the money I need to cover the cost of the canvas that I ordered for this project. If you would like to donate, your donation is tax deductable. I have a nice letter from the Pet orphanage that I will get posted tomorrow about it.

In the meantime to help support me while I spend all my time working on this project you can purchase prints and gift items featuring this image.

10×10″ Acrylic on Canvas
By Request

This little fellow has a bad habit of chewing on wires. Due to his shocking curiosity he was named Edison. We are hoping that he is trying to invent something like a personal shock therapy device and not just trying to get himself killed or practicing for industrial espionage.

10×10 Mixed Media on Canvas

Zsa Zsa is a flirt and an elegant little minx as well.

She can be found at cafepress and imagekind while you wait for the charity auction.

I am working on this series called 99 Cats and a Bird. The paintings are to be auctioned off at the East Lake Pet Orphanage in Dallas to raise money for the care of the dogs and cats that they rehabilitate and find new homes for.

Before the auction, I hope to find a venue to exhhibit all the paintings together. I want to hang them to look like a giant quilt on a wall. Preferrably a small space so that it give the impression of being overewhelmed with the number of cats.

For me the work has many layers of meaning. The most obvious is in support of having cats spayed and nuetered. But I also used to do crazy quilts and art quilts when I first graduated with my art degree so there is a bit of a nod to that part of my personal art history. And then the more humours side it all with quilts being a traditional “woman thing” and the multitude of cats refering to the whole stereotype of the “crazy cat lady”.

Some of the paintings look more like quilt blocks than others. Some refer to crazy quilt blocks with collaging of paper in the background. And other are to look more like applique with painted backgrounds that are solid or done in simple forms that are outlined in heavy black lines.

Individually the paintings are fun works of art that can be wonderful whimsical additions to your home, office or nursery. And in purchasing them 100% of the proceeds will go to a good cause. Help with purchasing the canvas for this project has been provided by the sponsors that you see listed on the right hand side of this page. Please visit them to show your appreciation for their support for this project.

10×10″ Acrylic on Canvas
Can you guess the refrence for this one?

10×10″ Acrylic on Canvas

Here we have Cleo. She seems to be a sphinx cat. She was of course named for Cleopatra herself.
She is waiting till Febuary to find a new home and support the East Lake Pet Orphange in the Process. But in the meantime, you can find gift items featuring her cute face at cafepress.

10×10″ Acrylic on Canvas

Cassandra was named for the Oracle because of her spiral pattern on her third eye. She is definately a cat with some attitude. But then it had to be a bit frustrating to know the future and not have anyone listen…..