What's With All the Cats?

[tealin]

Well, it started with The Amazing Maurice [who is a cat] and his Educated Rodents... This is odd because I was rather unimpressed with the book when I first read it, feeling it the 'youngest' of Mr Pratchett's kids' books (and a little condescending) but the radio adaptation is just so fantastically done – easily better than the other series of plays. Anyway, drawings.
Trying to draw Keith (the 'stupid-looking kid') but he ended up looking a lot like Wart. Badness. Must keep trying.
A couple of attempts at Maurice ... though he kind of ended up looking like a feline Bigwig. Sigh.

Then I happened to find a recording of Cats at my usual used CD place. Say what you like about the show as a show (I'm not a big fan of the leotards and plotlessness, myself) but I love T.S. Eliot and Andrew Lloyd Webber* so the two of them together ... it makes for a great album, independent of the stage production. And I think it would be a cool idea for an animated movie; sort of a Fantasia-esque collection of more or less unrelated shorts, each in a different style ... dunno if it'd ever catch on, though. Hah, they'd probably split them all up and release them on obscure DVD titles to prop up sales, like a certain Fantasia 2006... oh, Disney.

Bustopher Jones and Macavity
*and cats, for that matter

I was by no means catted out by the end of the day, but I went to a coffee shop near my place with a friend to go sketch for a couple of hours and managed a couple of halfway-decent things.

'Dear the Pope,
You're my favourite Benedict...'*
Oh wait, no. That's not the Pope. He's just got the eyes, man, the eyes... To his right is Hypothetical Hispanic Girl. I grew up in California and then Utah, places both with a Hispanic population of decent size, and both prone to one of the last remaining shreds of culturally 'acceptable' racism in the USA. There was always a feeling of 'us and them' and since I was one of 'us' I never really had much to do with 'them.' However, since moving to Canada, and therefore being separated from the whole issue for a number of years, I've come to appreciate Latin culture more, now that I can look at it a little more objectively. And I want to learn to draw the people. Unfortunately, I don't have much reference up here. So there you go, an idealized and blatantly stereotypical Latina. [facepalm]

*credit goes to the incomparable Armando Iannucci for that one

I realise with a shudder that I am better at drawing on a Cintiq now than on paper ... THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE.

Comments

[canisdoofus.livejournal.com]

"However, since moving to Canada, and therefore being separated from the whole issue for a number of years, I've come to appreciate Latin culture more, now that I can look at it a little more objectively. And I want to learn to draw the people. Unfortunately, I don't have much reference up here. So there you go, an idealized and blatantly stereotypical Latina. [facepalm]"

What exactly IS hispanic culture??? According to the US Census Bureau, I am "hispanic", because of my last name, the fact that I speak to languages -- one of which is a latin tongue, and the fact that my grandparents were born in Spain (SPAIN! It's in EUROPE! Not Latin America!). Well, there's the tidbit that my parents were born in Cuba, but they've been living in the US since 1960 (they were 4) and haven't been back!

I digress... I am surrounded by a slew of cultures labled "Hispanic" -- in fact, my home city is 80% "Hispanic". But Columbians are quite different from Venezuelans, and Peruvians, who hate Chileans, and everybody thinks Argentians are arrogant SOB's (they aren't! they're just blatantly honest), and Brazillians... what they hell are they? They speak Portuguese! South America is home to millions of people of Polish, German, Russian, and Itallian Descent. Cuba was home to thousands of Chinese, British, Irish, Russian, Palestinian, and Lebanese people, and now to hundreds of Angolans who Castro brought over for some odd reason. Such "Latin" celebrities as Shakira and Salma Hayek are in fact Lebanese... The list goes on!

But yeah! You need to take an art junket to Little Havana! :D I'll give you a tour!

LOLOLOLOL!!! I <3 Benny 16! You capture his baggy-Tasmanian Devil eyes so well! And yes! Cats should be an animated musical, though with cats... not crazy people with fluffy leotards!

[zombiesmut.livejournal.com]

To be fair, Shakira's only part Lebanese, and as she wasn't born in Lebanon, she's actually Colombian of Lebanese decent. It's a pet peeve when people do it in North America ("Oh, I'm Irish, oh I'm Scottish." No. You're not. You're fucking American unless your parents were born in Scotland/Ireland and have the accent. You can say you're of Gaelic decent but you're American. And I mean hypothetical 'you'.) and it's actually annoying when people do it in Latin America too. My family's entirely of Spanish decent, but I'm not Spanish, or even Costa Rican which is where my parents immigrated from, I'm American. Likewise, Shakira -is- Colombian, and while she has pride in her Arabic roots, she is Latina.

But yes, I agree, Latin American culture is a mish mosh of cultures, much like North American culture, and people forget that. I hate it even more when people treat it as a race. Latin American/Hispanic is not a race. I consider myself caucasian and Latin American, but my adoptive god father is black and Latin American as well. Which is why I hate it when people describe a criminal as "looking hispanic".

Oh, and Tealin, I love your art, particularly your Discworld stuff, I've been watching you forever, would you feel really invaded if I friended you? :) I adore the rat. It's awesome. I love the tail, for some reason.

*goes back to lurking*

[canisdoofus.livejournal.com]

Oh definitely! And yes, while Shakira was born and raised in Colombia, her roots are Middle Eastern, and she's very proud of that. Which is why I love her. The same applies to Salma Hayek, only she was born in Mexico instead. Carlos Finlay (guy who discovered that yellow fever is transmitted by mosquitoes, which was essential to completing the Panama Canal) is another example. While his roots are Scots-Irish, he was second-generation Cuban.

AND AMEN! Hispanic is NOT a race! It's an amalgamation of cultures united under the same language or language family in the Western Hemisphere.

I <3 Costa Rica! ^_^ Pura Vida, Baby!

[thefordmustang.livejournal.com]

I love the Maurice the Cat images. Keith is like Wart, but I known as you work with the concept he will become more his own character. (God, I loved that book with Keith (that part where he finally stands his ground and reveals he actually has a name) and the Nancy Drew like detective girl. I also learned a lot about rat kings- creepy that those things actually exist!)

Looking at your drawings, I wish you would be able to animate this story. It would fit perfectly for animation or a graphic novel.

[thearchduchess.livejournal.com]

I was going to say that Keith looks like the boy from Sword in the Stone, but then after a little IMDB research I find out that that is Wart. So, yes, he looks like Wart.

How old is Keith supposed to be - I always see him as about 16 and really gangly...

Oh, Andrew Lloyd Webber, how you cripple the West End! But, my Lord the Cats soundtrack is good! A Fantasia like production of it is inspired.

You know you ought to do it. Cough. :)

[tannhaeuser.livejournal.com]

[noodledaddy.livejournal.com]

condescending = A prisoner going down stairs.

Hey, is that a pocket I see?

[azvolrien.livejournal.com]

I've seen Cats twice. Once in London and once in Edinburgh. It does indeed have no plot worth speaking of, but my word it's impressive every other way.

[rawrsie.livejournal.com]

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of Maurice. As for latino reference, just come for 'football lunches' with me and Dan.. wherever there's a plasma tv and a game, you'll find plenty of latino reference this time of year. (just don't cheer for the other team)

[infiniteviking]

Yay for cats, in general and particular!

I like your Maurice -- he's got a tough edge that fits the character. Macavity -- my favorite poem from the Book of Practical Cats -- is also highly intriguing, though far younger than I'd imagined. (And I just love the mouse's expression. So cheerfully industrious.)

I know how you feel... every so often I'm inking something and a line goes the wrong way and my first instinct is Undo!

[(Anonymous)]

Yes cats do have a way of getting into our lives in just about as many ways as they can sometimes. As for the musical Cats, I loved it when I was younger (I didn't think the costumes or lack of plot were strange in the least), have two versions of it on video and cd, and was devastated when it went off broadway :/ (I was most definitely an odd kid... well I still am). Now, however I still think the music is pretty great, but I doubt I'd see it if it came to town again (due to thinking it is very weird). Anyway, I love your idea of an animated version and it made me remember that whenever I listened to the music from the show (before and after I saw it live) I always imagined actual cats singing instead of people.

Ahh! Sorry for the long post, but I also have to say that your art is AWESOME since I've had your site bookmarked for a while but have never commented here :).