i heart this cat heart print

work is copyright and by kindest courtesy of the artist

The first stage in creating an original print involves sketching out my idea, with a little help from kitty.
Never underestimate the power of the pet muse.  (Many is the time I have seen our Briar stroll in with blue or ochre blots somewhere after some time with his human.)  In this deft rice paper linoleum print from South Florida artist Rocio Fernandez, the muse and the feeling become the image.  (Want it?  It's on Etsy!)
This image is lovable to me not only because it's well crafted and adorable, but a shorthand for a choice Rocio made a while ago. She says it best:

Just like any artist, I wanted to create for a living but, I never took the initial step in doing something about it, even after obtaining my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. I got stuck at a job working crazy hours and would always come home exhausted, only to continue the next day and do it all over again. I felt like a machine, a mechanism of gears and bolts that was slowly wearing down. There was no time left to spend with my family, nor for my true passion.  I never realized how much art was a part of me until the simple action of living without it made me who I wasn't. . . 

And so the choice was made.  She followed her heart and you could say her cats.  Here's the artist's Etsy shop, and her Instagram.  Enjoy.