I love cats

A blond version of a cat lady in one of my collages.  Everything is handcut and pasted and embellished with rhinestones. A yellow napkin was used to make the hair.  Done for a woman decorating her daughter's room in leopard and turquoise.  https://www.etsy.com/listing/95268422/cat-collage-cat-woman-leopard-turquoise?ref=pr_shop is the link to the item in my online shop.  

Lots of interesting cat stuff in the Sunday New York Times.

Here are two items.

First, in the travel section on South Korea, is a mention of a Cat Cafe (godabang.com).  Cats live in the cafe for you to play with and photograph.

Who knew there was such a thing as a cat cafe? According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_caf%C3%A9),  a "cat café is a theme café whose attraction is cats that can be watched and played with. Patrons pay a cover fee, generally hourly, and thus cat cafés can be seen as a form of supervised indoor pet rental.

Cat cafés are quite popular in Japan, with Tokyo being home to at least 39 cat cafés. A pioneer is Cat's Store (猫の店 Neko no Mise^?), by Norimasa Hanada, which opened in 2005. The popularity of cat cafés in Japan is attributed to many apartments forbidding pets, and to cats providing relaxing companionship in what may otherwise be a stressful and lonesome urban life. Other forms of pet rental, such as rabbit cafes, are also common in Japan.^[3]

There are various cat cafés. Some cat cafés feature specific categories of cat such as black cats, fat cats, rare breed cats or ex-stray cats. A cat café must obtain a license and comply with the strict requirements and regulations of the Animal Treatment/Protection Law.^[4]

Japanese cat cafés feature strict rules to ensure cleanliness and animal welfare, in particular seeking to ensure that the cats are not disturbed by excessive and unwanted attention, such as by young children or when sleeping. Many cat cafés also seek to raise awareness of cat welfare issues, such as abandoned and stray cats. In 2011, American singer Katy Perry was seen at one of the cafes in Tokyo while on tour.

Secondly is a review of the book "Another Insane Devotion: On the Love of Cats and Persons" by Peter Trachtenberg.  A rave review by Jennifer B. McDonald, calls the book a pet memoir...... but "not jut a pet memoir".  Along with writing about the pursuit of his missing cat, Biscuit, she says that  Trachtenberg's memoir "is about the torments of grief and separation as much as it is about the nature of desire and devotion." 

Sounds intense.  Depressing.  Maybe I won't read it.

Here's a link to the book:  http://www.amazon.com/Another-Insane-Devotion-Love-Persons/dp/0738215260

Happy reading!!  Happy New Year!!  Happy cats!!

Animal soap

Just discovered this really kool felted soap that I want to share which includes some fantastic animal art. Check out http://www.etsy.com/shop/SoFino?ref=seller_info
 

 

"SoFino Handfelted Soaps combine high quality soaps with exfoliating soft merino wool; last longer than regular bars of soap; and leave you with a reusable multipurpose pouch."
 
Custom orders are welcome.  Among the 30+ available scents are:  chocolate expresso, lemon verbena,  apricot freesia, spellbound woods, and love spell.  Nice!!!!

Dogs I met this summer

 I just returned from two weeks in Los Angeles.  Lots of beauty to photograph.  Lots of cute dogs, especially at Bark n' Bitches, an amazing pet boutique that  rescues dogs from shelters and finds them homes.  Which means that lots of dogs are running around the store.  They greet you and sit on your lap and give you a little kiss.  Great place for some pet portraits. You can read more about them at http://barknbitches.com/.

Here's a dog I saw hanging out at a Venice Beach bistro.

I saw these dogs recently at a park in Chicago.

YAY FOR DOGS!!!!!!

AND CATS TOO!!!!

Here's Gonzalo who so kindly shared his house with me on my trip to California.

At the beach with my new app

Got a new app for my iphone and I am beyond thrilled.  Had a blast this weekend photographing at some of Chicago's beaches.  School is out!!!  Look forward to a summer filled with art making.

Squirrely

I've just discovered likeabirdblog and have decided to participate in May Photo-a-Day or in my case Mid-May Photo-a-Day. Check out this link for info:

http://likeabirdblog.com/2012/04/may-photo-a-day/

Here's my first - May 12 - surroundings - a squirrel on my balcony screen door.  He just wants to say hello and get a peanut.

Here's the daily challenge list:

Buddhas birthday

 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/05/vesak-how-buddhas-birthda_n_1478896.html

See a fantastic slide show on people celebrating Buddha's birthday around the world when you go to the link above.

Here are some of my collages featuring Buddhas with cats and dogs. I like the idea of animals and Buddhas together.   It's comforting.  I like to think that "over the rainbow bridge" there are tons of Buddhas sitting around with the beloved animals we've lost.  Sounds like nirvana to me. 




  

 

Animal Takeover

ANIMAL TAKEOVER!!!!  I love it!  Seen in the Wynwood Arts District.

Here's a link where you can find out about the street artist behind the art. 
http://culturedesigners.com/2011/10/05/street-artist-profile-animal-takeover/

"His Tumblr page  explains the basis for his universe. A place where animals look down on our pathetic human lives as they plot the reclaiming of what is rightfully theirs.

They do not destroy anything – unlike us. They just want their shit back. They really want the humans to chill the hell out. In large cities they would actually like to hang in their bars."

I like this guy.

Cat street art in Florida

The Wynwood Walls

Here's info re the art work above, seen in The Wynwood Arts District, aka Wynwood, the hub of the Miami's emerging Arts community. It is located just of downtown Miami.  Wynwood is home to over 50 Art Galleries, numerous art venues such as the Bakehouse Art Complex and world-famous Margulies and Rubell Family collections, as well as over 100 local artists. 

The Wynwood Walls Fifteen influential artists from Asia, Europe, Latin America and the United States have been invited to create outdoor murals on the warehouse walls of Miami’s Wynwood Art District. 


This is an amazing place, like an art heaven.  You can walk for blocks and blocks surrounded by larger than life wall murals.    

http://wynwoodartdistrict.com/

Florida Animals Scene

I just took a fantastic trip to Southern Florida where I met lots of pets and saw lots of animals, both real and imagined - meaning I saw some great animal art which I'll be sharing with you. I'm going to do a travelogue featuring animals seen on my vacation while throwing in info on kool places I went and people I met.

For starters, a crow woke me up every morning. He was right there on the balcony. Tbere are lots of crows in South Florida and they are really noisy. "Their voice is not the melodic trill of most songbirds but variations of a coarse, loud cawwww. Crows have an extensive repertoire and can communicate a surprising number of messages to fellow crows including alarm, feeding, rally, comeback and fight calls. They also have a series of courtship calls. The crow is probably the most intelligent bird on this continent." (http://www.crowbusters.com/facts.htm)

The weather was perfect every single day. So were the palm trees and the pie.

There's something about sparrows

Check out Heavenly Creatures Art (the online store from which the above image comes) for some fantastic animal art:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/HamjArt?ref=seller_info

The actual image can be found at:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/69185620/sparrow-art-moses10x8

So what is this something about sparrows? I just found a quote that moved me so profoundly that I have sparrows on the brain. Even bought a sparrow ring today. Will take some photos later and share.

Here's the quote from Henry David Thoreau - “I once had a sparrow alight upon my shoulder for a moment, while I was hoeing in a village garden, and I felt that I was more distinguished by that circumstance that I should have been by any epaulet I could have worn.”

This should tell you a lot about my love for animals. What a gift they are.

Pet Portraits for Mothers Day

Want a unique gift for a pet loving mother? Check out above examples of photocollages, pet portraits that include room scenes featuring pets on chairs/couches underneath framed family portraits. All you have to do is send me photos to include. And then you decorate. You select the color scheme, type of chair, etc. I'll include lots of fabulous details and embellishments like Simba's collar (2nd image above).

You can also put a pet on a chair underneath the Mona Lisa or any favorite painting or portrait of a beloved author, actor, artist.......whatever you want, I will do and your mother will love!!

Another idea - your mother's pet in a setting of your choice.

All photo elements are handcut and pasted, creating texture. Collages can be placed in shadow boxes or frames that allow their dimensionality to show....a pet diorama.

For more information, contact me at petcollage@gmail.com for details.

Mothers Day gift for mothers who love dogs and dogs who are mothers

I love these dog shaped dog treats. The cookies above can be made to order in the following flavors: peanut, chicken, parmesian, apple banana cinnamon, and liver. Other cookie breeds are also available at the Buckaroo Bones online store:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/BuckarooBones?ref=pr_shop_more

Buckaroo Bones is a bakery where you can find all natural gourmet dog treats. All items are baked, packaged, and shipped personally by Ms. Buckaroo Bones who lives in Grants Pass, OR.

They are baked from scratch. No shortcuts are taken by using commercially prepared broths, boullion cubes, canned or dehydrated meats, etc. Ingredients are first quality, absolutely fresh, and safe for dogs.

If you know a mother who's a dog lover or a dog who's a mother, these would make a unique Mothers Day gift for both. Just be sure to specify that the treats are for dogs only!

Meet Kiwi and Waffles

So, I applied to be an online buddy through a program at the Red Door Shelter, a Chicago animal rescue organization. How adorable are my two duckling buddies!!! I am happy to be helping them out.

Check out the shelter's buddy program:

http://www.reddoorshelter.org/buddy.php

I'm web adopting a cat!

I have signed up to become a buddy for a homeless cat through the Red Door Shelter in Chicago. This wonderful animal rescue organization offers a program where one can donate money to support a cat, dog, bunny, bird, duck or whatever animal may be in the shelter at the moment. I did it in honor of my nephew's birthday and because I am yearning for a cat but can't have one because of my allergies.

Can't believe how excited I am to meet my buddy - even if it's only online! I suppose I could go visit him/her and take photos.....hmmmmmm.

I'll keep you posted.

Here's the link to the buddy program. I love this program.

http://www.reddoorshelter.org/buddy.php

And here is a big photo of my beloved Persian, Roscoe, so you can see him in all his glory. He died last summer. Even though I had to take pills and use an inhaler when I had him, it was well worth it! Would I do that to myself again? Nope. Which is why I'm on a hypoallergenic cat hunt. I may have to settle for a dog eventually - a hypoallergenic one since my husband is allergic to dogs! Why do i think that the hypoallergenic cat is likely a myth but believe that there are hypoallergenic dogs (among them Shih Tzus, Poodles & Portuguese Water Dogs?? Does anybody know the truth about this?

Anyway, heeeeee's Roscoe:

Cat Show Photos

I went to a fantastic cat show last weekend and photographed some absolutely gorgeous creatures. As I am on the lookout for a new cat, a hypoallergenic one, I wanted to meet a Siberian. They are reputed to have saliva that is less allergenic than other cats. I spoke to a breeder at the show who said this is indeed the case and that she sends her cats' saliva to the University of California Davis for analysis. Then there's the Cornish Rex cats which some allergic people supposedly aren't as allergic to. Other breeders at the show said, "There is no such thing as a hypoallergenic cat!!!!!" Who do I believe? Anyway, Siberians are typically $900.00!!!!!!

If I wasn't allergic, I would 1) go a shelter and rescue a whole bunch of cats and 2) get a British Shorthair. They have the sweetest looking faces. And their faces are round which I love.

Here are some of the cats I met at the Lincoln Club Cat Show in Palatine, IL.

Introducing the big, beautiful, brassy Siberian with the magic saliva:

British Shorthair

Burmese

Cornish Rex

Persian kittens

Persian adult

Balinese? Himalayan?

Unidentified