I absolutely love doing realistic cat drawings. After all, our feline friends are undeniably beautiful with the most striking markings and huge, expressive eyes. In addition, they have an abundance of character and can be cunning, mischievous, entertaining, intriguing and unique. I can understand why I get so many requests for personalised cat gifts!
Very often the portraits are custom gifts for cat loving friends and family members. However, about 90% of the time they are to commemorate a lost pet.
Here are some examples of cat portraits I’ve completed over the years…
Cat Portraits by Emma Gorton
Tabitha
This absolute beauty is Tabitha. She was Ray and Susan’s treasured pet for 19 years before she sadly passed away.
Ray thought that a large detailed drawing would be the ideal personalised cat gift for his wife for their wedding anniversary. Moreover, it would be the perfect way to commemorate her.
Both Susan and Ray were absolutely thrilled with the portrait and it now takes pride of place in their living room.
“Emma Gorton is a remarkable animal portrait artist able to capture not only a true likeness of the animal but also their spirit and character. We commissioned Emma drew a portrait of “Tabitha” our 19 year old cat who sadly passed away in May 2016. Working from a selection of photos Emma created a truly stunning picture. Tabitha had the most beautiful liquid green eyes and Emma has captured these in a way that seems so full of life and energy. Even though the picture is black and white it shows every detail of her tabby markings and even individual hairs. The picture has pride of place over our mantelpiece and is a great comfort to us as Tabitha is back in her rightly place watching over us.”
R. and S. Dodd
Rameses
Pat and Steve sent me the perfect striking photo of Rameses to work from. He was an extremely good looking Egyptian Mau and a much treasured pet. At the time of drawing him he was the grand old age of 12 years and had sadly been starting to struggle with some health issues. Therefore they wanted a custom drawing in order to celebrate him and ensure they’d always have a part of him in their home. He was a pleasure to draw, not least because he was my first cat portrait!
Pat and Steve were delighted with his portrait and they even sent me some great photos of Rameses posing with it!
“It’s come in the post, and we love it – thank you ever so much for the portrait of Rameses. I think you’ve captured him and his personality just perfectly. It’s a work of art – time to get it framed now!”
S.Griffiths
Abby and Millie
Another personalised cat gift, this time from wife to husband. These beautiful cat sisters are Abby and Millie – isn’t it a sweet photo? As I’m sure many pet owners will agree, it’s not often that you manage to get two pets together both looking good in a photo!
Tina wanted me to draw them as a special 60th birthday present for her husband Bob. What’s more, the portrait would commemorate Millie who had sadly died four years earlier.
I drew the portrait in a large 11″ x 14″ size to get as much detail as possible in and I was so happy with how it turned out.
“Sadly Millie died 4 years ago and this was commissioned as a very special birthday present. As I predicted, Bob loved the drawing and couldn’t be happier! I am sure there will be other occasions for which I will be in touch.”
T.Harrington
Mickey
Sarah commissioned me to draw a charcoal portrait of Mickey the cat for her partner Tom. Unfortunately Mickey had recently died at the grand age of 23 so this was to be the perfect way to celebrate his memory.
He was a great cat to draw as there is just so much character and expression in his little face. I really wanted to ensure that I captured that.
I drew him as a small sized portrait and he took about 10 hours to complete. Tom was delighted with the finished piece.
“I just wanted to let you know that Tom LOVES Mickey. Everyone is so impressed with how accurate he is and how his character comes through.”
S. Pinkney
Alice
Alice unfortunately passed away unexpectedly in the summer of 2019. James thought that a charcoal portrait of her would make a lovely personalised gift for his girlfriend Leanne who was devastated by the loss.
I completed the drawing in time for her birthday and she was very happy with it, even getting quite emotional when unwrapping it.
The couple have now had the portrait framed and it takes pride of place in their home.
“I requested a portrait of our cat Alice who passed away unexpectedly this summer. Right from the start, Emma was the height of professionalism and knew exactly what I wanted. She kept in regular contact throughout the creation process and answered any questions promptly and thoroughly. Emma isn’t afraid to offer her own opinions as to what works best and the finished product was absolutely incredible, even better than I’d hoped. The portrait was a gift for my partner’s birthday and she got genuinely emotional upon seeing the finished article. I would highly recommend Emma for any pet portraits; not only is she a fantastic artist, she is a consummate professional who takes genuine pride in her work.”
J.Conway
Guy
Guy the stunning little kitten belongs to Sue who was the lucky winner of a Your Cat Magazine competition to win a realistic cat drawing.
It was great to be able to draw a kitten as I normally draw full-grown cats; drawing him was so much fun! Guy is particularly gorgeous with his lovely markings and incredible eyes.
Sue and her husband were very happy with the finished piece.
“Thankyou very much for the beautiful portrait of Guy, we love it and it will certainly bring happy memories of him. It will look lovely in our new bungalow and will take pride of place.”
S. Baldwin
Harvey & Sooty
Julia got in touch with me after seeing the three realistic cat drawings I’d drawn for her good friend Helen.
She had recently lost Sooty and was devastated. Therefore, she thought a pet portrait would be the perfect memorial idea.
Julia asked me to draw the lovely Harvey as well and we decided that two separate small drawings would work nicely.
“I was recommended to talk to Emma about portraits of my pets and I am SO GLAD I did, they are fabulous. Emma is very talented and the whole service was perfect .. I look at my portraits every day and they give me lovely memories of 2 very special fur babies … I can not recommended her enough!!”
J. Chambers
Loki
Loki was yet another commemorative piece. She had sadly passed away close to Christmas so Becky decided that a personalised cat gift would be perfect for her husband.
Becky asked me to ensure that I include a distinctive notch at the top of Loki’s ear. On many occasions I’ve been asked to include these little details that make pets who they are; certain markings, their favourite toys, even their long tongues!
Becky and her husband were so happy with the finished portrait and said it really helped them with their grief.
Becky later send me a great photo of Loki’s sister Nyx, posing in front of Loki’s portrait.
“Hi Emma, just wanted to share this pic of Loki and her sister, Nyx, together. I can’t tell you how wonderful your drawing is to have. My husband said today ‘of all the pictures we have of Loki, this is the most real and life like’. It’s really made a difference to us and our grief and it’s like she’s here in some way.”
B.Woolley
Order a Special Custom Portrait
Would you like a custom portrait of your treasured feline friend? Or perhaps a personalised cat gift for a special cat loving friend or family member? Ordering is simple – please take a look at my Order a Pet Drawing page.