Animalau Blog

I like boys with dark hair, and lots of it.

I agree with the lionesses! The males with the voluminous dark manes are striking. The darker his hair, the better his health and the higher the level of testosterone.  Under the African sun, however, it can take its toll. They are more easily spotted in the golden grass while hunting, and the heat increases the likelihood of abnormal sperm.

Sexual selection drives males to spend more of their resources on growing or maintaining these extravagant physical assets. In the same way, we value elaborate decorations, such as gold embroidery. Beauty is ridiculous, but it’s in our nature to appreciate  and be obsessed with it.

It persuades us to use extensive funds and labour to produce it, but it’s much more pleasurable looking at it than being or supplying it.

pant pant pant!

Somecat gimme a drink!

-Christie

What makes a doe feel sexy?

roar roar roar roar

A stag has to fight for her (and all her friends). He has to roar the most often and the loudest!

If he is victorious he will have a harem of doe and he will still roar all the time because…

It’s an aphrodisiac for females, they come into heat faster when they hear his roars.

And it lets other males know who is dominant.

At dawn and evening, Stag roars and roars. It’s not uncommon for him to get too exhausted to lead a harem.

Soon another stag will take over. 🙁

-Christie

Guardian

detail, click to see larger!

detail, clickity click to see bigger

-Christie

Hello jellos! From today to August 21st I will be participating in AWOL Gallery’s 9th annual and original Square Foot Show! Artist / Public Reception is on Saturday at 7 PM, at the gallery, TWIST, 1100 Queen Street West.

Gallery hours are Wednesday to Saturday 12-7pm, Sundays 12-5. There will be a lot of artists and I think it will be fun!

All the work is 12×12 in, priced at $225.

You can try to spot my animarlzs!! Here be clues:

Head Piercing into Body

Pygmalion Tiger (this time with more staarrsss)

Maybe see you there?

-Christie

There is a baby boy, and he is born in the year of the rabbit.

-Christie

I hope they won’t be mere stories one day.

3200 left

click image for detail

Three of the eight subspecies are extinct. We can’t bring them back with Venus wishes!

http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/finder/tigers/index.html

-Christie

As scavengers, vultures are meant to recycle the remains of the deceased. Their presence brings balance to the community. This equilibrium is threatened, however, as Egyptian vultures have been observed using stones to break open ostrich eggs, package of lives just beginning. Intelligence can be a wicked gift, as it does not necessarily guarantee the welfare of the whole.

detail of his feathers

detail

This painting is a commissioned piece of my first painting using the acrylic inks! When I first started using this medium I tried using them with brushes and nibs, ’cause I was primarily drawing and wanted to use some colour for accents.

And the reason why I couldn’t give this painting to my client is because I had traded artwork with my hot glass instructor at the Pittsburgh Glass Center, Jason Forck!

sabre tooth tiger skull of glass!!!

I thought it was a pretty unfair trade, since this really is the coolest thing in my studio. If you have been to my studio, you’ll know it’s the first thing I show guests…and here I am showing it all to you now! Okay. Too many dead animals. Bye!

-Christie

The second Angry Alpine Ibex!

tralala

He is a commissioned piece. This is the first time I’ve repeated a painting, but I thought it was quite fun to re-imagine his fancy clothes and to give him a different personality by tweaking his face.

-Christie

These are tropical monkeys living up north. The poor things eat bark, tree needles, and dig for grass beneath the snow. They have stubby tails because long tails freeze. When it’s snowy outside they roll into balls of fur or… sit in hot springs : )

gouache

This one is not in a hot spring : (

-Christie