Painting Cats

Portrait of a Siamese Cat by Denise Laurent

How many of us have commissioned an artist to paint their cat? Not many I suspect. But how many would like to do it?

I think that a well crafted painting of a cat companion can go well beyond a photograph in terms of conveying the character of our cat but it has to be very good to do that.

A painting or drawing of a cat that can be called "art" should accurately capture both the appearance of the cat and his or her character and perhaps a bit more. It may portray something of the relationship between cat and human and it might portray what the artist's client feels about their cat. These are very subtle and elusive concepts but I believe that they can be achieved in pantings of the highest quality.

I would like to present an artist who lives in London, England who takes commissions for paintings of animal companions. Her name is Denise Laurent.

She works in oils or acrylics and can work from photographs. I would guess that the best combination for an artist who paints animals is to paint from life plus have some photos to work from as cats are only still when curled up dozing or asleep! As Denise mentions on her website, the cat is a still life in motion.

If the client likes the idea, Denise will involve the client in the making of the painting as it progresses. I think that this is smart and sensible as it allows her to receive information in respect of the person's thoughts and feelings about their cat and about the cat's character and behavior and whether this information is on the canvas. This all helps to get it right for the client and to capture the essence of the individual cat.

You can see a page on cats in paintings by other artists on this page.