A Tranquil "Spot", Marilyn Manwaring

I love the texture of this wildcat’s fur and the change in colors from black, white, burnt sienna and cinnamon. This was a painting that went smoothly because of my familiarity with feline noses, eyes and fur. The entire painting was first scratched onto a black board with the scratches (using tattoo needles and scalpels) revealing the white kaolin clay underneath the India ink. It was now a traditional scratchboard painting in black and white. But I wanted to show the colors of this cheetah. I  began to glaze in layer after layer of watercolors. After each layer, I would scratch back to almost white to get the highlights. The color left behind became either the main color or the shadows. The brightest whites were scratched last to highlight the ear tips, tail and whiskers.