Review
Original cat paintings combined with ancient wisdom: a unique and upmarket book for cat-lovers everywhere.
Product Description
This book combines 40 original cat paintings with a selection of ancient Chinese wisdom, ranging from proverbs to Confucian sayings.
About the Author
Kwong Kuen Shan is a Chinese artist living in Britain. She exhibits her paintings locally in Brecon and the Welsh mountains.
Excerpted from The Cat and the Tao by Kwong Kuen Shan. Copyright © 2002. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
I suffered from cat phobia. I never had a cat until six years ago. My first cat adopted me. Healey belonged to my ex-neighbour. They moved away taking all their cats with them. Healey returned four times to the land where he was born and brought up. The fourth time my husband and I felt we had to keep him on humanitarian grounds.
For a year he was kept outside and fed out in all weather. I could not bring myself to touch him, let alone allowing him into the house. I knew the fear was irrational. I froze every time he was near me. Quietly and patiently he changed all that. I have had more cats since.
At the time I was developing a new painting project and something was missing in the plan. One day while gardening I saw Healey sunbathing between me and stone buddha, our garden gnome. He curled around the buudha, looking relaxed and happy. I found the missing element.
What seemed to be a good idea at the time landed me on a very steep learning curve. I had no knowledge of cats. I never painted them before. An amazing journey began. I started observing and studying cats; my own cats, Healey, Rocco and Joseph; other people's cats, stray cats. I was totally charmed by their elegance, agility, resilience, and above all their independence and mental toughness. I wanted to capture all these in the only way that I know, the Chinese way. It took me two years to produce enough sketches to work from, but now I have an ever expanding cat album. They are painted in Chinese styles with Chinese tools, materials, techniques and perspective. I have exhibited these paintings several times.
I painted the pictures in this book using both the meticulous and freestyle techniques. The meticulous method involves detailed drawing and refined elaboration, while the freestyle uses deceptively simple and economical brush strokes to capture the character and spirit of the the subject. It is not concerned with details.
My understanding of cats continues to develop and my affection for them to grow. I want to do more with these lovely creatures who share our lives. I want to share my appreciation of them with others, for them to see my vision of cats! I want to add an extra dimension to my cat album, and I have drawn on my knowledge of Chinese literature to achieve this.
For a year he was kept outside and fed out in all weather. I could not bring myself to touch him, let alone allowing him into the house. I knew the fear was irrational. I froze every time he was near me. Quietly and patiently he changed all that. I have had more cats since.
At the time I was developing a new painting project and something was missing in the plan. One day while gardening I saw Healey sunbathing between me and stone buddha, our garden gnome. He curled around the buudha, looking relaxed and happy. I found the missing element.
What seemed to be a good idea at the time landed me on a very steep learning curve. I had no knowledge of cats. I never painted them before. An amazing journey began. I started observing and studying cats; my own cats, Healey, Rocco and Joseph; other people's cats, stray cats. I was totally charmed by their elegance, agility, resilience, and above all their independence and mental toughness. I wanted to capture all these in the only way that I know, the Chinese way. It took me two years to produce enough sketches to work from, but now I have an ever expanding cat album. They are painted in Chinese styles with Chinese tools, materials, techniques and perspective. I have exhibited these paintings several times.
I painted the pictures in this book using both the meticulous and freestyle techniques. The meticulous method involves detailed drawing and refined elaboration, while the freestyle uses deceptively simple and economical brush strokes to capture the character and spirit of the the subject. It is not concerned with details.
My understanding of cats continues to develop and my affection for them to grow. I want to do more with these lovely creatures who share our lives. I want to share my appreciation of them with others, for them to see my vision of cats! I want to add an extra dimension to my cat album, and I have drawn on my knowledge of Chinese literature to achieve this.
