Drawings and Paintings of Cats and Orang Utans:  Vivien Blackburn

Drawings in charcoal, mixed media and pencil.

The orang utans are part of a series I did working at the zoo one cold February, they were indoors, behind glass in a heated room and I was outside in a corridor in the bitter cold winter.  The mother orang utan was wrapping herself up in an old sheet to keep warm, looking like a little refugee.  Because they were behind glass they were only 6 inches away from me and it was a wonderful change from life drawing to study them.  The mother was fascinated by what I was doing and stayed close while the baby roamed back and forth - I'd continue drawing the baby each time it returned.  I would like to go back and do more as I found them a really interesting subject.   (Charcoal)

Cats are interesting, their bodies are so fluid adapting to their pose and their movements are lithe and appealing.   Paddy being totally black is a real challenge to draw - to even see  his face clearly isn't always easy!  He's an interesting study in lost and found edges though.