Hi, furriends! Today I’m talking with a cat whose name alone is a masterpiece: Smarty Picatso. She lives in a studio full of paints, clay, and more artistic temptation than most of us could resist. Between stealing clay stamps, adding “custom” paw prints to pottery, and perfecting the tail-curl-with-side-eye pose, Smarty’s got the art life down to a fine art (literally).
So grab your smock, find a sunny spot, and enjoy my chat with this creative connoisseur of cat culture.
Tyson: You live in a studio filled with paints, clay, and all kinds of creative magic. Do you have a favorite medium? Are you more of a watercolor watcher or a clay critic?
Smarty Picatso: Clay is my favorite. I like to steal the little clay stamps my Purrson makes. I use them as a hockey puck when my Purrson is not looking. I try not to break them, but it happens.
Tyson: How would you describe your role in the studio? Are you a muse, a model, a supervisor, or a mischievous little chaos agent?
Smarty Picatso: My role in the studio is to distract customers with my cuteness and be the center of attention. Why should they look at art when they can look at me? But please don’t touch.
Tyson: Do you have any favorite art tools to bat around or nap beside?
Smarty Picatso: My favorite art tool would be the glaze brushes. I like to rub my nose on them. Also, I like to drink the pottery wheel water.
Tyson: Have you ever accidentally added your own paw print to a masterpiece?
Smarty Picatso: I’ve added paw prints and beautiful claw marks to large casserole dishes that are sitting out to dry. Sometimes I will get in them just to curl around and see if I fit.
Tyson: If you could create a piece of art yourself, what would it be? Maybe a sculpture of the perfect nap?
Smarty Picatso: If I could create a piece of art for myself, I would do etching on scratchboard. Maybe Clawy, Clawy Night!
Tyson: Your Purrson teaches lots of different kinds of art. Do you ever attend classes, or do you prefer to observe from a dignified perch?
Smarty Picatso: On rainy days, when I’m not outside, I will stay in the studio with homeschool art students. I will observe them. I’m glad they don’t use my litterbox. That would be a cat-tastrophe!
Tyson: Do the humans in classes treat you like royalty, or do you have to keep a low profile when the studio gets busy?
Smarty Picatso: I keep a low profile around humans. I run from smokers. I can smell it a mile away.
Tyson: What’s the best part about living with such a creative human? And is there any downside – like glitter in your fur?
Smarty Picatso: I like my Purrson. She hangs around in the studio a lot making things and talking to me. The downside is she won’t let me sleep on top of her car’s convertible top.
Tyson: Have you inspired any specific pieces or projects? Bonus points if you were featured in a painting or mosaic.
Smarty Picatso: I inspired my Purrson to make Kitty Kat Ring Holders. The first few she made were of me. Also, she’s painted my watercolor pawtrait a few times and makes cat sculpture bowls.
Tyson: Do you think all cats are born artists in some way?
Smarty Picatso: I think cats are born artists because we are mark makers and we love nature and textures. And our favorite color is purrple.
Tyson: What advice would you give to other studio cats—or cats whose humans are just getting into art?
Smarty Picatso: I will say keep those mice out of the studio. Snakes too. You really don’t want to scare the customers and students away. So do your job!
Tyson: How do you stay still for pawtraits? Or do you prefer abstract interpretations of your floof?
Smarty Picatso: I stay still for pawtraits by taking a long cat nap while dreaming of eating baby birdies.
Tyson: With a name like yours – Smarty Picatso – what would your art movement be called?
Smarty Picatso: My art movement would be called Scratchilism.
Tyson: Have you ever knocked over a sculpture or ‘rearranged’ an art installation? I promise I won’t tell.
Smarty Picatso: I have gotten cat fur all over a sticky, freshly made acrylic painting. But hey, it looked better that way.
Tyson: What’s your go-to pose for inspiring creativity? Sunbeam loaf, majestic stretch, or tail curl with side-eye?
Smarty Picatso: My go-to pose for inspiring creativity is tail curl with side-eye and then take off running sideways.
And that’s Smarty Picatso – part-time muse, full-time studio supervisor, and an artist in her own right (whether her Purrson planned it or not). From inventing Scratchilism to perfecting the art of glaze-brush nose rubs, Smarty proves that every cat has a little masterpiece in them.
Thanks for sharing your studio secrets, Smarty — and for reminding us that purrple really is the best color.
You can check out Smarty’s artist here – and let them know I sent you!
Purrs and artistic whiskers,
Tyson 🐾
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