Cat Painting Before the Black
Firstly, let’s take a look at how this cat painting, featuring Mimou (what a cutie) got started. I started by working on white fur in the shadows.
While I knew in my head these were white, my eyes couldn’t help but read “Brown and Blue”. Because of the white background, Mimou’s chest looked really dark.
Painting the Black Behind the Cat
As you can see below, adding the black to this cat painting immediately improved how those shadows are read!
A Note About Painting Shadows
A quick side note about the black and blue effect of the shadows: these are different colours because the light on the right side of eh painting is warm in tone, while the light on the left is cool.
Our eyes like warm light sources and cool shadows because it’s a naturally-occurring palette. On a Sunny day, the blue sky creates ambient light that’s really cool in temperature. So when the sun hits something, it’s very warm by comparison! Because of the difference between the two, the light side of objects on a sunny day look warm, while the shadowed sides look cool.
Indoors, you get a similar effect any time someone has a lamp on one side (usually warm) and a window on the other (usually cool). For more on portrait lighting, check out this guide: 3 Simple Steps to Portrait Lighting.
Full Cat Painting Timelapse Video
Now that you know some of the steps that went into this cat painting, check out the whole video below!
This video is also available on my YouTube Channel, so please subscribe if you like the demo.
Looking for More Cat Art?
You can see more examples of my custom cat paintings in the Paws by Zann Cat Portrait Art Gallery
Or, check out All Pet Portraits
If you have a cat you’d like to see on canvas, send me an email at pawsbyzann@gmail.com. I’d love to bring your art vision to life.
For art updates, fresh pet portraits, videos and more, sign up for my occasional newsletter (below).
Thanks for reading! See you next time.
Zann
