Chance the Min Pin

Sunday, August 26, 2007


Just finished another commissioned pet portrait. This one is Chance, a miniature pinscher who can often be found hanging out at his family's store: Ben's Bark Avenue Bistro. Ben's offers high quality pet foods and treats and some fun gift items as well.
Click here to visit the web site
I first met the owners when I learned they carried the brand of dog food I feed my furry kids. I was very pleased to discover this as Ben's is much closer to my home than the store I had been going to. The owners were very gracious and allowed me to leave some of my pet portrait business cards at the store. Since then, I've added a couple of framed pet paintings to the store and have had at least one commission (in addition to Chance's) as a result of having my work there. I'm very grateful for all the support given to me by business owners and pet lovers such as Chance's family!

Scans of the work in progress for Chance's portrait are below; if you'd like to see my YouTube video with a time lapse and further explanation of the process, click here. To create the portrait, I used India ink, watercolor and color pencil on Claybord textured.

the reference photo Chance portrait in progress #1 Chance portrait in progress #2 Chance portrait in progress #3 Chance portrait in progress #4 Chance portrait in progress #5 Chance portrait - finished!

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"Just Cat"

Monday, August 20, 2007

My latest portrait is of "jcee" the sphynx cat. "jcee" stands for "just cat" - as his owner says, he's just cat, no hair, no whiskers, no tail - just cat. A very unique looking guy to say the least, and the first sphynx I've ever met in person.

jcee - watercolor on Yupo, by Ann Ranlett jcee - reference photo, by Ann Ranlett
jcee is a miracle cat - he overcame a challenging start in life and has only survived as long as he has because of a caring, devoted owner. They're very special to each other and she refers to herself as his "caregiver". He was the runt of the litter and his siblings chewed on his tail which led to infection and eventual amputation. He has only a short, fleshy stub where his tail should be. The infection probably led to his chronic heart condition which requires expert care and regular medication. I can't recall his exact age, although I believe he's at least 7 years old - considering his condition, that's quite phenomenal and a testament to the amazing job of loving care and support his owner has provided for this wonder-cat.

jcee - photograph, by Ann Ranlett

You may recall seeing jcee in an earlier post - he was the subject of another painting of mine and of a number of sculptures created by my brother. Click here to read that post.

An interesting tidbit about jcee: his uncle is the cat who played the naked Mr. Bigglesworth in the Austin Powers movies.

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Latest ACEO - "The Look"

Sunday, August 12, 2007

The Look #2 - ACEO pencil drawing of a tabby kitten, by Ann Ranlett
Continuing the Art for Critters theme of my last post, I just listed this ACEO (mini, 2.5" x 3.5" format) pencil drawing of a kitten. I used a reference photo I took a couple of years ago at FieldHaven Feline Rescue - a local organization I've supported for a number of years. A portion of the final sale price of this drawing will benefit FieldHaven's rescue, adoption and education efforts. Click here for the auction (which ends 8/19 at 6:15 PST).

I called this piece "The Look" because of the intense look on the kitten's face - cute, but mischievous at the same time - you just know she could go crazy at any moment! Actually, this is my second ACEO of this kitten, the first one was a painting of her in shades of green.

The Look - ACEO painting of a tabby kitten, by Ann Ranlett

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Art for Critters - Art Sales to Help Animals

Saturday, August 11, 2007


I'm pleased to announce that I am now a member of "Art for Critters" - a group of artists who sell their work on eBay and regularly donate a portion of the sales to various animal rescue & support organizations. It was an honor to be nominated for inclusion in the group and I'm very happy to be a part of this team of talented, supportive and charitable artists!

Donations to charity are closely watched by the eBay powers that be in order to prevent unscrupulous sellers from saying they'll donate to a charity for the purpose of attracting attention and then not following through with the donation. There are 2 ways to make donations from eBay sales - through their "Giving Works" program or by having a previous arrangement with a specific charity and posting a letter from that charity in the auction listing.

The Giving Works program is coordinated through MissionFish - there is an extensive list of organizations that have signed on with MissionFish to receive donations from eBay auctions. When a seller lists an item on eBay, they can choose to select a charity and then specify the percentage of the final sale to donate. When the item sells, the donation is automatically taken out and sent to the charity. Giving Works auctions will have this symbol next to the auction title.

I had already listed a few items through eBay's Giving Works program. Now, as a member of Art for Critters (A4C), I am able to select from an additional list of animal-related charities approved by A4C and I have access to the all-important letters from these organizations. I don't have many charitable items listed yet, but I plan to always have a few auctions that will benefit either a MissionFish or A4C charity.

Here are a couple of links:
•My A4C auctions
•All A4C auctions
•My Giving Works auctions

And please check back in September for news of the coordinated art auction effort to help a small family of mountain gorillas in the Congo. Recently, a number of members of the family were killed. Not surprisingly, the rangers have limited funding and staff to help protect the remaining gorillas and to find the killers. Over 20 artists will be donating portions of their art sales (from Sept 8 - 18) specifically to raise money to help this effort. There will probably be a lot of gorilla art, but other subjects as well. In the meantime, you can visit Wildlife Direct to find out more about the gorillas.

Photo courtesy of Wildlife Direct
This is Ndeze, one of the survivors of the attack on her family.

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- - - All art and images ©Ann Ranlett, unless otherwise credited. All rights reserved. - - -
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