Paintings With Soul

"The Ninth Life," 11" x 14", acrylics on museum quality panel, $499 plus s&h to the first one asking nicely. Inquiries can come to   me . Starring one of my current studio kitties Mona Lisa, but harkening to memories of Turtledove, the studio namesake, who passed away on Thanksgiving Day eleven years ago. There's something tender and precious about the delicacy of old age; the lines of a life well lived, battle scars and smile lines both. The surface of this painting bears those same sorts of marks, telling the story of a peaceful rest after a grand adventure. Thanks, as always, for following along with my artwork. Warmly, Kim

Languorous (daVinci).  12" x 16", acrylics on museum quality panel, portrait of studio muse and quality control manager, $549. Inquiries may always come to   me . So what does an artist do when they are still feeling a bit under the weather on Day 5? They show up. Because nobody else will finish varnishing paintings, respond to emails, update inventory archives, coordinate commissions, and work on grant proposals. And when it came time for me to choose a subject for today's painting, I opted for my kitty. Because today was a day to stick inside my comfort zone. And eat mashed potatoes.   There's no gift quite as wonderful as a custom pet portrait. I paint from your photos, resulting in a surprise to unwrap that's like no other. Now is the time to start discussing and planning any holiday gifts you would like to commission. Museum quality portraits start around $400, and are priced according to size and complexity. If you have a smaller budget,   reac...

Delusions of Grandeur 24" x 30", acrylics on panel, featuring a self important feline. I do have a collector interested, but should they choose to pass, Grandeur is $899 (includes s&h inside the US) to  the first asking nicely . SOLD (TY!) My whole body is sore. I've been painting and dancing at the easel since 10am. Painting can be quite a workout!

"Catnap," a portrait of studio kitty daVinci, 12" x 12", acrylics on panel. Available to the first daring to invite Vinnie into their home. He's been peeling wallpaper from the walls and taunts the crated puppy ridiculously. Although the painted version should behave far better. $200 will get you a cat. Inquiries to me , and thank you so much. And yes, I am still doing commissioned pet portraits, starting around $300 for a museum quality painting. A portrait is a fabulous way to honor our four legged family members. Reach out if this is something you are considering - I do a couple of them each month. Thanks for supporting my art, Warmly, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com

"Spots," 5" x 7", acrylics on museum quality panel, available for purchase to the  first asking nicely , $199 (includes s&h inside the US). Thank you so much! Returning to my roots and painting a simple, backlit kitty. This was a means of reminding myself that I DO know how to paint. The last 10 paintings with the ribbons pushed me so far out of my comfort zone - which is a fantastic thing to do, because that's the only way I'm going to learn - but it's also exhausting. Thanks, as always, for supporting my dream, Warmly, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com   

"Midas," 24" x 30", acrylics on panel, available for purchase to the  first asking nicely , $899 (includes s&h inside the US). Thank you so much! I should charge double for this one. Those ribbons took a damn eternity, so many repaints I lost count, and I'm freaking cross eyed from the stripes. BUT - here's the thing - I stuck through it, asked myself why things weren't working, found the answers through trial and error, and made it work. So yesterday's crappy paint day? No longer matters my friends! Thanks, as always, for supporting my dream, Warmly, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com   

IN PROCESS: "Midas," 24" x 30", acrylics on panel, available for purchase to the  first asking nicely , $899 (includes s&h inside the US). Thank you so much! This is daVinci, one of my studio kitties. And this painting is entirely HIS attitude - he thinks he's a Pretty Big Deal. So the ridiculous crown of gold ribbons and his stately, classic 3/4 profile are absolutely perfect. I had hoped to finish the piece today, but had a tough time finding my groove. Which happens - so, I'm going to be kind to myself and return tomorrow for another pass. It's only paint. And we can't always be on fleek. Well, maybe you can, but I can't! Thanks, as always, for supporting my dream, Warmly, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com   

"Turtledove's Bow," 9" x 12", acrylics on panel, featuring the studio namesake, Turtledove. Turtle loved any sort of neckwear, and during the holidays she sported all sorts of finery. This original painting can be yours for $99 + s&h - as always, inquiries may come to me . SOLD (thank you!) I miss this cat, especially at Christmas. She loved playing in the tree. Every morning, we would come down to find the beaded garland stripped from the tree, but not a single ornament out of place. I would watch her all day long, pretending I hadn't untangled and replaced the garland. And then, at some point while we were sleeping, she would quietly remove it, and drag it someplace to "kill." It's one of the many warm memories I have of this gentle, sweet kitty. Thanks, as always, for following my art, Warmly, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com    PSST:  All remaining inventory from my Toys series of paintings (the little 6"...

"Mona Lisa's Garden," 10" x 20", acrylics on a museum quality panel, a portrait of Mo Bug (my studio kitty). This delightfully impressionistic garden painting can be yours for $399 (this is a bargain price, but it's also much looser and juicier and sketchlike, so I thought I'd price it accordingly) - let me know if I can wrap her up for you! There's several gardens growing in the studio ( Daisy and Posey ), and another one blooming outside. Life is good at Casa Santini. ALSO: come paint with me in Tulsa next week - May 4th and 5th. More information can be found here . Thanks for following along with my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

"Daisy," 10" x 16", acrylics on masonite with white charcoal details, depicting a tuxedo kitten peeking from behind an arrangement of daisies, $579 (with complimentary s&h inside the US) to the first asking nicely . I've pulled a number of paintings from my archives, and am dressing them up with florals. Daisy used to be Mum's Kitten , and I absolutely LOVE the depth and added interest the piece now has. Take a peek at the detail below - the painterly quality of the surface is mouthwatering. At least to me! Thanks for following along with my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

"Domino and Roses," 7-1/2" x 12", acrylics on museum quality panel, depicting a tender little b&w kitten perched among an arrangement of roses, $449 (with complimentary s&h inside the US) to the first asking nicely . I worked on my daughter's portrait today, starting to paint in the florals that will make up her crown (who am I fooling, it's a petal filled brain explosion). And then I pulled out this old painting , drawing roses in overtop. The drawing begged for paint and some more adjustments. And now, what was old, is new again. And would make a gorgeous Mother's Day gift for that kitty loving Mom. (I loved him before, but I love him even more after this upgrade!) Thanks for following along with my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

"Mona's Nest," 11" x 14", acrylics on museum panel, portrait of my studio muse Mona Lisa, $1259 to the first asking nicely. As always, inquiries may come to me .  Today didn't go as planned, but I tried to roll with it. Sometimes that's how things play out. What matters is that I didn't beat myself up, I worked with what I was given, and I made it to the easel long enough this afternoon to finish Mona. Thanks for your interest in my artwork and here's to a better day tomorrow, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

"Jingle," 5" x 11", acrylics on museum quality panel, inspired by studio kitty Mona Lisa, $349. This is a reworked painting , one from a couple years back, that needed a little more oomph. Today it got that, splashes of color and an added jingle bell. Do you want Jingle for yourself?  email me  then! Buy notecards, tote bags, cell phone cases, etc here. Hoping everyone had a wonderful weekend - tomorrow rings in a new month. I'm not ready for December! Thanks for your interest in my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

"Lying in Wait," 5" x 10", acrylics on museum quality panel, depicting a kitten looking for a little adventure, $329 (includes shipping and handling to a US address). Email me if you would like to to own this little guy - and thank you so much for your interest! SOLD (to the first one asking nicely!) Something else is lying in wait.  The holidays are just around the corner. Yikes. I am so not ready for them! (PSST - portraits make great gifts, and I do gift certificates. Also, custom cell phone cases and other goodies with my artwork on them. Just saying....) Thanks, as always, for following along with my artwork, Warmly, Kim   ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com

"Shelter Tabby," 5" x 7", acrylics on museum quality panel, depicting a lovely gray tabby (of course, those who have painted with me will know that gray is never really gray - there's lots of color there!). This painting is being given away to support my local shelter - please read below for details. The Princess and I visited our shelter last week to drop off a donation. We were saddened to learn that they were at full capacity with cats. And there were so many wonderful kitties there, all ages, colors and sizes, happy to be played with and loved on. There was a crew of regular volunteers grooming and nurturing and letting us know about personalities/etc, and we enjoyed ourselves for over an hour. Of course we fell in love with a couple residents. It's impossible NOT to. We can't bring any more pets into our household (we are at capacity here too) but we decided we could still help out by sponsoring a couple cats and rai...

"Harold," a painted sketch, roughly 5-1/2" x 6-1/2" centered on a 9" x 12" mixed media paper, acrylics, private collection (THANK YOU!). As always, inquires may always come directly  to me .  Yesterday I made a list of all the things that needed to happen before The Kentucky Derby. It was a daunting list, and it scares me. But it's also nice to have everything identified that needs to happen.   Things like finding shoes, creating new marketing materials, doing a large scale mailing, shipping fresh inventory to my galleries, freshening up my website, building a slideshow presentation of my experience, finalizing various poster signing/appearance details, picking up my Derby dress from the seamstress, finishing up the sketches sold last month, creating more racing scene contours, taking care of final details on the new painting process video, connect with a couple mentors to mentally prepare for the week, completing two big piec...

"Tabby Kit," 5" x 7", acrylics on a museum quality panel, depicting a tiny little orange striped guy from Morgue File . This painting can be yours for $289, which includes s&h inside the US. And in case you didn't see it, a little doodle of him is also available for sale here . Inquires may come directly to me .  Although it certainly doesn't FEEL like spring here (snow and ice and wind chills, brr!), I can tell that spring is coming. The mercury is rising a wee bit each day and the days are getting longer and brighter. Over the weekend we drove with the moonroof open just to feel the sun's meager and oh-so-very-welcome warmth (although the heat in the car was cranked, too, in the interest of full disclosure!). I wanted to work with spring-like colors today, and this little guy was still on my mind , so I grabbed a small panel and got to work. Of course, I also have Poppy to finish and some changes to make to another po...

"Kisa," 8" x 10", acrylics on panel, depicting a gorgeous British Shorthair cancer survivor (she lost her eye to melanoma). This painting is done in acrylics on a Raymar panel, and will be headed home once the varnish dries. Inquires on acquiring one of my limited commissioned pieces may come directly to me . Thanks so much in advance! #YourTurn, #DayTwo As mentioned yesterday, this week I am participating in the #YourTurn Challenge. Inspired by Seth Godin , #YourTurn is made up of bloggers who recognize the privilege of an audience, and collectively are pledging to deliver content for 7 days straight. Today is #DayTwo, and my assignment is to share "What's Important to Me." I'll try to keep it short, in no particular order. My family. My insanely brilliant and cherished circle of friends. The security of a roof over my head. The tools of my trade. Music to fit every possible mood (thank you Spotify and Soundcloud!) ...

"Turtledove," 2007, 8" square, acrylics on panel, depicting a wonderfully special ladybug, from my own personal collection. Fresh from the tough streets of Los Angeles, Turtle joined our family in 1991 - she came with both physical and emotional scars and an odd meow that sounded like a dove cooing. When I began the studio in 2000 (after leaving the traditional workforce), it seemed symbolically similar to the rebirth she experienced when adopted. And so it made perfect sense to name my business after her - and thus TurtledoveDesigns was born. Why am I doing the #YourTurn Challenge?? In October 2006 I started painting and blogging daily. I did it quietly, and at first only told a few close souls, so that I felt a sense of accountability. But I also didn't want to fail miserably in front of a huge audience. Clearly, in the past 7-/12 years, my audience has grown a bit beyond those first confidants. And there have been times I've drop...

"Because He Can," 8" x 10", Golden acrylics on a Raymar panel. Who else could this be but the one and only daVinci, my studio kitty? The painting is available for $469 which includes s&h inside the US. Inquiries may come  to me . Please and thank you! daVinci has no problem dropping everything to clean his butt, no matter where he is or who might be in the room with him.  He purrs while cleaning himself too. What do you suppose that means? Here's your chance to get a piece of him without his stinky-ness. Too bad I can't wrap up some kitten snuggles, too. In process images are here.   Thanks, as always, for following along with my artwork! Warmly, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com