Black Cat "Ebony"

 Ebony

Cats fascinate me. They are a completely contradictory creature.  Warm and affectionate, yet cool and disinterested,  shy and timid yet ferocious,  dependent  yet absolutely superior, the their only consistent characteristic is their inconsistency. The same animal can display all the  grace of a ballet dancer and the delicacy of a bull. A cat's purr can calm even the most troubled heart. They are, above all else, unpredictable, an endearing yet irritating quality.  If you have a cat as your friend, you will never be bored.  Annoyed, disgusted, entertained, enchanted and most of the time bewildered, but never bored.  Unfortunately I don't think a cat can say the same about us. We do bore them sometimes. With some pets, such as dogs, I wonder who it is that owns whom, but with cats there is no question...

Cats relate differently to us than dogs do.  A dog's person can do no wrong. Even when we make idiots of ourselves, to our dogs we are superior in every way. the most wonderful people in the world.  They will never admit to our imperfections,  But cats have no illusions. They know we are inferior in so many ways,  yet somehow they seem to love us anyway. But they never let us forget who or what we are.

This painting is part of a series entitled, "When I Look In Your Eyes," inspired by a song from the Dr. Doolittle musical.  I love the look in the eyes of this one,  serene, yet watchful.  You never know what they are thinking but you know their thoughts are deep.  The painting is in acrylic on stretched, wrapped canvas, all edges painted and no staples show so that it may be displayed with or without a frame. It is available through Daily Painters  and Art Helping Animals.

By the way, I am working on a companion piece to this painting. It will be called "Ivory." I will let you figure it out.