1st Place, Non-Professional Original

This portrait is stitched on a silk fabric ground using flat silk which has no twist and gives a lovely reflective shine as the viewer moves from one position to another, depending on the light source.

The whiskers and ear hairs are finely twisted silk and touches of metallic thread are incorporated to enhance the features. Satin stitches are laid in differing directions to replicate the animal’s hair growth. This requires subtle blending to create the Cougar’s markings.

This is one in a series of animal portraits that I am stitching to alert people to the tragic loss that would result from their extinction.