A Cat's Treasure is a textured impasto oil painting of a whimsical black cat, and the treasure in question is left to the viewer. The cat is the obvious subject. A small shape near the paws is the less obvious one. The studio is not telling you which is which. That is on purpose. The painting is a small puzzle that wants to be looked at twice.
The black of the cat is the interesting part. The studio built it up in three or four dark colors, not just one. There is deep purple, dark green, and a bit of warm brown in the coat, which is what stops the cat from reading as a flat silhouette. The eyes are a single bright dab of yellow that does most of the personality work. The impasto is heaviest on the cat, lighter on the background, which is what makes the figure pull forward.
Small character paintings like this do well in spots that would otherwise go empty. A powder room, a small entryway, or a bookshelf end are all good homes. The piece is the kind of thing people notice when they walk in, which is what small art is for. The painting also works in a child's room, where the whimsical subject and the small scale tend to do well together.
The studio is upfront that the treasure in the painting is not a specific thing. It is a shape near the cat's paws, and the studio has heard it read as a mouse, a ball of yarn, a small fish, and once a small wrapped present. The studio is not going to confirm or deny any of these. The point of the painting is that the cat looks like it has something, and the viewer is welcome to decide what.
One last note. The painting is one of the smaller works in the studio right now, and the impasto is heavier than the photo suggests. The black cat has actual texture, and the yellow eyes have actual ridge. The piece is small, but it is not delicate, and it can handle a child's room or a kitchen without any special treatment.
