Born free,

 as free as the wind blows
As free as the grass grows

Born free to follow your heart

~John Barry-Born Free~

Elsa  Kathryn Hansen 5x8 (c)2014

Elsa was a bit of a challenge for me, and I felt I was all over the place with her. At times I wanted to quit, whining in my head that it was too hard, but I pushed along slowly and in the end I am extremely content with her! She will be one of two possible pieces I will be entering in the Pencil Art Societies International Art Exhibit this summer. I still need to draw the other one tho!! But I do have till June, so I'm not too worried about it.

~up next~

Baboi, the cat who won my contest over on Facebook at the beginning of this month. I started him last week but I wasn't pleased with it...he needed to be cropped in so his dazzling eyes were more prominent. So, I started over and now I'm just trying to figure all that fur! 

Elsa's story

Just as the sun was peeking over the horizon we saw 4 moms and a little over half a dozen chubby cubs high up on a rocky ledge, gazing out over the land. They were very active, getting in some playtime before the heat set in. We sat and watched their activity for well over an hour.

Elsa is inspired by the magnificent lions we saw that day in Samburu while on safari in 2010. 

I am loving the challenge of drawing Elsa, and as I nail each difficult section I feel a little triumphant, knowing I am expanding my skill level a bit more! As a high contrast drawer, and lover of black and white images, the eventual black background will be very dramatic with the lighting on her face! Can hardly wait to finish her!

After days of rain and a finished portrait

There is nothing like Southern California after 4 days of rain...crisp and clean! We should  get a breathtaking crop of wildflowers in the mountains this spring because of it! SO exciting to think how beautiful it will be!

I finished Fred just as the Oscars concluded last night!

Fred  (c)2014 8x10 Kathryn Hansen

Now on the drawing board: 

Elsa, a new lion that I've been dying to get started for the past 6 months. I am keeping it small, 5x8 because if it turns out well I'll be entering it in the Pencil Art Society's first International Exhibition. I have sent a few commissioned pieces overseas, but I have never sent framed artwork internationally, I have only entered shows that I can drive my work to, so if I do get in it will be intriguing to pack it all up and ship it out! 

Percy will be back on my board as well! He needs to be done by the end of March as I want to enter him in the Birds in Art Show in Wausau Wisconsin.

AND

I am holding a cat contest over on my Facebook business page. If you would like to enter, the winner receives a matted print of their beloved kitty! Just send me up to two photos at kh@kathrynhansen.com. Best of luck!!

on and off the drawing board!

Queen B   Kathryn Hansen (c) 2013   8x8

i don't know why but i keep futzing and futzing with queen b's portrait just like i did with the king, but i think that i finally got it to my satisfaction...maybe! this quote by leonardo da vinci, always comes to mind when i linger over a drawing: "art is never finished, only abandoned." cuz that's exactly how i feel! i know 99.9% of people wouldn't be able to pick out the changes i keep making, but to me, if i don't refine it my eye will go right to those spots every time, so i labor over certain drawings until i feel that it's good enough! crazy making, i know!!

and now that queen b is complete, up next is sammy, moo's brother in crime!

and i think it's safe now to share the commission i could not show you for weeks and weeks! 

House in Woods by Kathryn Hansen (c) 2013

on the prowl again!

queen b is back on my drawing board again and needing to be completed very quickly now, not just because i still have 4 commissions to go but because i want to enter the pair (king leo) in an upcoming gallery exhibit...so the race is on!! wish me luck and cross everything you've got!

even tho i completed my large house commission on friday evening, i still can't show it to you, as it needs to get framed and then given to their client...hopefully next week! but here's a few more snippets of the piece. little leo (our foster kitten) can't stay off my drawing board...too many pencils and erasers to play with!!

The Queens progress

i was making good headway with queen beatrices drawing, but now she is put on the back burner because my commission is due soon and i'm only 1/2 way done...even tho i drew on it like crazy over the weekend! yikes!! 

i am still adamant about completing her before the end of october tho, so i can enter her in an upcoming gallery show.

just never enough time in my day to create!!!

lady diamond showing queen b her place!

another commission completed!!

Moo (c) Kathryn Hansen  8x10 2013 

i finished drawing Moo late last night after an exciting but disappointing soccer game. altho it was very chilly at the sports complex after the sun set, it was a very heated game, with lost tempers, shoving, and shouting. The Wazowskies lost 4-8...and they were not happy about it...altho they did enjoy their snacks afterwards!

this is a new piece started last week, drawn in between two commissions. i figured The King needed a queen, cuz you know men can't live without us ladies!! plus i want to enter the royal pair in an upcoming gallery show...so she needs to be done by beginning of November!

i won't be able to show you my next commission until it's fully completed, just in case the client of my client sees it. altho i think the odds of that happening are greater than me winning the lottery...but the internet can be a small world at times, so i can't take the chance! so instead here's an adorable shot of Maddie, one of our foster kittens...growing by leaps and bounds!!

Long Live The King of Lewa Downs

The King   Kathryn Hansen (c) 2013   8x8

Leonardo's story

Leonardo in progress

i'm not sure if you realize from my blog just how much i love domestic cats...but i do! 3 cats own me...i'd have more if i wasn't afraid of being classified as a crazy cat lady! but by definition, "an elderly suburban widow who lives alone and keeps dozens or more pet cats" i can't possibly be one as i am not a widow, my 2 daughters live with me, and i have less than half a dozen cats!

but i'm also crazy in love with large felines as well! 

we saw this beautiful boy on a cold late afternoon in Lewa Downs Conservancy in Kenya. he apparently had killed a local farmers cow earlier in the day, according to all the uproar on our guides walkie talkie. (you can see the blood stains on his nose and muzzle)

this bad boy was collared and vigilantly monitored by the game keepers there, so they knew exactly what he was up to. but by the time we saw him, he was pretty tired after his kill, and just laid down on the rich chestnut colored soil the whole time.

then we spotted these rare and strange beings taking photos of us, like we were the main attraction!