Owning rats, or as some say, being owned by rats, is a journey. For me it began with being intensely rat-phobic to where I am now, rat-obsessed (ok, i admit it).
In my constant pursuit of all things RAT, I came across several artists and crafsters doing exciting stuff with a rat theme. In fact, I found so many that I am making this a two-part post.Kim Parkhurst does amazing realistic dollwork, including this fabulous hairless rat, Puddin. Also, check out her rat prints at her Ebay store Toad Briar and her photos of her other dolls and paintings (and her own pet rats!) on her Flickr site.
This next piece was found on crafster.org. I find the idea particularly endearing and the patch itself is very beautifully and sensitively crafted. It is a personal tribute from Miz Persnicket (aka Athanasia).
"I did this large patch last week on a whim instead of studying for a midterm. My camera was out of batteries, so I had to scan it! It is a homage to my Mister Mayo."You can check out Miz Persnicket's craft blog, crafty olive, to see her other work.
I love the diversity of styles and mediums I found. These next pieces are just a few of a large collection of stained and fused glass rats done by artist and ratlover, Elizabeth Rupert. Her glass studio is called Mischief Glassworks. I especially like the rat with wings and am fascinated by how the pieces glow.
Ultraviolet, another ratlover and craftster.org member, made Pirate Rat from a pattern in Debbie Bliss' book Toy Knits, and then this cute little female rat based on a Fairy Mouse pattern from the same book. I like the fact that it really looks like a rat and not a mouse (altho I have nothing against mieces...I'm just tired of people thinking mice are cute, but rats are ugly)! You can see photos of some of Ultraviolet's former rats and other knitting projects at her www.threegoodrats.com website.
piebirdjosie (aka Josie), another craftster.org member, had this to say about her cool rat hat:
"I just added some ears and ribbon to a basic hat. Now hopefully my rats will let me into their exclusive club."She also created the wonderful Dear Birthday Rat Bag for the friend who inspired her to adopt her rats. You can find out more about Josie, her creations and her furry friends at her website, piebirdjosie.squarespace.com
Tara's angel rat, another craftster.org find, has such a soulful expression. I love the unusual colors and bead accessories she used.
The first time I saw this cake made by Rach of the Jungle, for her rat-obsessed roomate's birthday, I thought it was a picture of real rats eating a cake. It is a truly inspired idea and the marzipan rats are amazingly realistic. Someone posted the link to the ratlist which is what inspired me to search craftster.org for more rat-related stuff, so I guess Rach is responsible for this post!
Labels: art/craft
I love this pic done by Amalia DuBois (and the title!).The way the rat was incorporated into the knotwork is wonderful. It is happily oblivious to being all wrapped up because it has its hands on the star it wanted.
update: 4-22-06
If you are interested in seeing how this went from sketch to final drawing, Amalia has posted the process here.
Labels: art/craft
Thanks to a heads-up from Cindy, a member of ratlist, I recently discovered the website of an amazing artist who draws her rats as Egyptian royalty, has cardboard temples for them and elaborate tomb plans. It is so right in so many ways, it captures their complexity, spirituality and nobleness and is a beautiful and touching tribute to the inner rat that most people can't see. The stylized drawings and sketches are beautiful with small touches that delight.She also has created a Yahoo group for people who like to draw rats, ratdrawing, which includes the talented Drusilla Kehl of Illustrated Rat , and other lovely people who are either fans of Amber's work, artists themselves, or both.
She takes commissions and has a Cafe Press site where you can have your favorite rat memorialized on a t-shirt or in other ways. Definitely worth checking out.
Labels: art/craft
How does Socar J. Myles do such amazingly realistic rat drawings? I can't get my rats to hold still long enough to properly observe them! I did this sketch while Bunny was in the corner of his cage watching me and falling asleep. He likes to be near me. Probably because he knows if i see him i'll want to get him out.Labels: art/craft
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