Auburn Journal Article – May 2010

Posted on May 25, 2010 by admin
Article published in the Auburn Journal
Animals Inspire Duo of Local Artists

by Loryll Nicolaisen – Journal Features Editor
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Story appeared in the Lifestyle section, Page B1
“Hey Kid” is one of many pet portraits created by Newcastle artist
Ann Ranlett, who says 90 percent of her work is “critter art.”

Some artists depend on a muse to find inspiration. Others
find it with something that meows, quacks or barks.

Two of the three May featured artists at the Auburn Old Town Gallery,
218 Washington St., have an artistic connection to animals.

Ann Ranlett said 90 percent of her product
is acritter art.a

aItas been a life long love of animals,a said
the Newcastle artist.

Ranlett started drawing and painting pet portraits around 10 years ago,
projects commissioned by friends. Her commission list grew to a point that
she was able to quit her job about five years ago.

aI have a great time because Iam meeting people who love their
pets,a she said.
Ranlettas process starts by photographing her subject, which she
said provides an opportunity to get to know the animal.

aI get good photos, and photos make a big difference,a she
said.

Ranlett said she mostly paints dog portraits, alots
of chihuahuas, quite a few golden retrievers.a

aCats are nice but not as special as some dogs,a she
said.

Not all projects are quite so domesticated, though.

aI actually have a commission for a snail,a Ranlett said. aThat
is probably one of the stranger ones on my list.a

Ranlett also said goats are fun to work with. She also recently created
a portrait of a potbelly pig, Homer, for a local animal rescue group.

No matter the critter, Ranlett said she always looks forward to the end
result.

aItas always butterflies in my stomach when I turn a portrait
over to the owner,a she said.

Mary Prantil also knows her subjects quite
well. Sheas been raising
llamas and angora goats in Colfax for 14 years.

aThe natural progression is to take that wonderful fiber and put
it into my art work,a said the fiber artist. aEach animal is
a treasure in its own color values.a

Prantil loves ato be able to spin the
fiber, take it right from the hoof and spin it and make it into a creation.a

She also likes working with color, dimension and texture, creating tapestries
and felting.

Itas not hard for Prantil to find inspiration.

aItas all surrounded with my ranch, and the forest,a she
said. aI live in the forest, and it really has an influence on my
work and my work and my colors.a

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Merlin – Cat Portrait

Posted on May 7, 2010 by admin

My latest portrait of Merlin is one of many portraits I’ve done for this particular friend and client. Let’s see. . . if I recall correctly, I’ve “portraitized” these critters for her: 2 dogs, 2 cats (not including Merlin), 2 horses and a cockatiel. Some have been realistic renderings in ink on scratchboard, others have been colorful “Petzazz” paintings. This portrait of Merlin is the first one I’ve done for her in pencil and we’re both very happy with the result!


5″ x 5″, Graphite Pencil & Color Pencil on Bristol

I started by taking a number of photos of Merlin who was surprisingly willing to pose for me. Cats are often tough to photograph. With a dog, if there’s a treat or toy involved, they’re generally pretty happy to focus on that while I take photos. Cats are typically much more difficult to engage and many of them would rather run away than pose for me. Merlin was sitting outside the patio door, and at first, I left the glass door shut and took photos through it. But he seemed pretty content, so we opened the door and he stayed put while I got some nice, unobstructed photos.


This is the photo I selected for reference


I rotated the photo so his eyes were level and cropped it to 5″ x 5″


I wanted to fill in the lower left with fur, so I found that in another photo which I cropped and scaled to the same size. I put the same white line in both photos as a guide.


A greyscale photo helps me with the tones for the graphite pencil work

I did all of the graphite pencil work first (my favorite pencils are Faber-Castell 9000s), then sprayed the portrait with workable fixative. That keeps the graphite from smudging and blending with the color pencil I add over the top of the graphite. I didn’t use much color pencil; I wanted it to be subtle. I colored his eyes, nose, muzzle and the edges of his ears. And if you’re wondering how I did the white whiskers, I used a stylus to “draw” them in before I started the pencil work. I press the stylus into the paper to create an indented line that stays white if I’m careful when I draw over that area. It’s a nifty trick I learned from an on-line tutorial.


Drawing detail

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An Ostrich Egg for Betty White

Posted on November 22, 2009 by admin

I had a brush with celebrity earlier this month – I was thrilled to be able to meet actress and animal advocate Betty White (yes, that Betty White – from the Mary Tyler Moore Show, Golden Girls, Boston Legal and The Proposal).

Here’s the back story: I’ve been drawing animals in pen & ink on ostrich eggs for many years, since I worked at the Sacramento Zoo as the Volunteer/Events Coordinator in the 80’s. These eggs are presented as awards at Zoo events, offered as silent auction items and gifted to major Zoo donors and supporters. I’m very fortunate to have maintained a relationship with the Zoo staff and they commission at least a dozen eggs from me each year. By last count, that’s well over 200 eggs that I’ve “inked”.

I was honored when my Zoo friends commissioned an egg as a gift for Betty as a “thank you” for being the featured guest at a fund-raiser for the new new “Tall Wonders” giraffe habitat expansion project. Just knowing that a piece of my art would be in her collection was exciting enough, but then I was invited to the event too! Below is the egg, with a giraffe drawing, of course.

When the egg was presented to Betty, I was standing on the other side of the room watching with butterflies in my stomach. I honestly got chills when the Zoological Society’s board president handed the egg to her and she seemed truly touched an happy to receive the gift. She then sat down with it clutched to her chest for a little while.

It was a wonderful evening and I felt like I was part of the staff again – I hung out with a couple of Zoo gals at the raffle table, chatted with folks I’d worked with ages ago and got up close and personal with a couple of critters. Event attendees were also able to get a sneak preview of the new giraffe habitat. As for Betty, she was funny, gracious and sweet – an amazing woman and she admitted during the Q & A session on stage that she was 87. I sure hope I can be that spry and sharp when I’m her age!


There wasn’t much time to have a conversation with her, but thanks to Valorie Schneider (the current Volunteer Coordinator) and Mary Healy (Zoo Director), I was able to have two photos taken with Betty and chat with her a little bit. I also got her autograph on my name tag.



Yes, I was fairly floating when I left the event and walked back to my car that night and I suspect I had a grin on my face the entire drive home!
_________________
Note: this post was originally on another blog and had some comments. I’ve moved it here now, and screengrabbed the comments.

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Sacramento Bee Article, 2007

Posted on September 15, 2007 by admin
‘Pet portraits’ Artist Trying to Save One of Nature’s Great Masterpieces

By Cynthia Hubert – Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Saturday, September 15, 2007
Story appeared in SCENE section, Page K1


“Gorilla Gaze #2 was created in graphite by artist Ann Ranlett.

People are OK, Ann Ranlett says. But animals are the Northern California artist’s preferred subjects.

Ranlett paints and draws commissioned “pet portraits” and nature images, and she’s one of more than 30 artists from around the world contributing work to a benefit eBay auction to help fund the protection of mountain gorillas in Africa.

We talked to her by phone from Newcastle, where she shares a home with her husband, John, border collies Magpie and Patch, and a quarterhorse named Bess.

Q: Why animals?

A: I have always been fascinated with animals. I’ve been drawing them since I could hold a crayon. In general, they have kind natures, and that’s why I have an affinity for them. People are good, too, but I don’t do artwork of them.

Q: You’re a biologist by training?

A: Yes, and so is my husband. We met at Sac State. The biology background definitely helps with my artwork. I’m a very detail-oriented, scientific person, and that eye for detail works well in my portraits.

Q: Do you meet most of your animal subjects before painting or drawing them?

A: If it’s a portrait of someone’s pet, I like to meet the person and the animal to get a sense of the personality. I take a whole bunch of photos, pick four that work well and let the owner make the final decision.

Q: What types of animals are the most difficult to work with?

A: Cats are always challenging. They love their own people, but when it comes to anyone else, they would rather go hide under the bed. But I have worked with a couple of older ones who are happy to lie around and look at me.

Dogs are easy. All you need is a tennis ball or a cookie and they are very cooperative.

Q: What is Art for Critters?

A: It’s a group of artists who sell their work on eBay and donate portions of the proceeds to various animal organizations and charities. You can find our eBay auctions by searching for “A4C.”

One of the members of the group alerted us to the recent killing of members of a family of mountain gorillas in Virunga National Park in the (Democratic Republic of) Congo. The rangers in the park have limited personnel and funds to protect the remaining members of the family and to catch the killers. So artists are joining forces to support them. The new group is called Art Helping Mountain Gorillas.

Q: How does the project work?

A: Through (Tuesday), more than 30 very talented artists will be listing art on eBay. There are more than 100 items, most of them animal-themed. If the items sell, the artist donates 10 percent to 100 percent of the proceeds to help the gorillas. I’ll be donating 50 percent.

To see the artwork, people should get on eBay and type in “WDGP.” All of the auction items will come up.

Q: Where can people go for more information about your work and this project?

A: My Web site is petportraitsbyann.com. To find out about the gorilla project, go to arthelpingmountaingorillas.googlepages.com.

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