My Cat and I, original upcycled vintage painting

“My Cat and I”

Felix catus, is your taxonomic nomenclature... shall I continue? If you've found this art you probably know the rest of an Ode to Spot! I chose to memorialize the relationship between the characters Data and his cat Spot in this Victorian era portrait style. I painted these miniature portraits on top of vintage prints which fit perfectly in their vintage frames. The original of these paintings are now in my personal collection, as I'm rather fond of them.

Prints of Victorian era portraits were very common. Looking at history, it's interesting to remember that without cameras, drawings and painted portraits were the only way of capturing one's image. It was common to have portraits painted of family members to document their life. Painted portraits were quite expensive... which would have influenced the trend of miniature portraits, which were more affordable due to their size and materials. (Although, I'll testify as an artist that while smaller means less paint, it doesn't mean less time... and it is extremely difficult to paint tiny!) 

So with that in mind, I enjoyed creating these portraits of Data & Spot in this older portrait style. As an android incapable of human emotion, Data's past times all revolved around activities that are uniquely human to help him better understand and perhaps become more human... including painting and owning a pet cat! Even though Data did not feel emotions, he had a familiarity of the pathways to his brain regarding Spot that were clearly indicative of care and love.

Data's exploration of painting was also fascinating to watch... he explored the art of painting to unlock his own creativity, another human concept that logically was out of Data's reach. In one episode, he was obsessively painting his first ever dream... even painting with both hands two paintings at once! 

In painting these portraits, I liked imagining that Data himself painted these portraits... perhaps he broke the prime directive and was stuck in time in the Victorian Era. And to pass the time, painted a pair of miniature portraits... one of himself, and one of his true and valued friend, Spot. 

miniature portrait in acrylic by Heather Castles
Original dimensions : 8.2 x 10.4 cm (3.25 x 4 inch) paper on board
Original frame dimensions : 11.5 x 13.75 cm (4.75 x 5.25 inch) vintage frame

Artist’s collection : This painting is one of my favourites and is in my own collection. Sometimes I let pieces from my collection go... if you are interested in this piece please get in touch. It is also available as prints and digital downloads.