Here Kitty, Kitty: The Inspiration Behind a Locked Door
A sticky note simply stating “Here, Kitty, Kitty - 7x11” sat in my studio for years—a tiny reminder of a story I couldn’t forget.
I wasn’t much of a cat person, and painting them wasn’t really on my radar… until Olive arrived.
About 10 years ago, my daughter in Nashville adopted a tiny kitten. She brought Olive to a girls’ weekend at our mountain house. Arriving late, she shut Olive in a bedroom while unloading cars. When she went to get her, the door was locked. The little kitten had no food, no water, no litter box—just a very nice room with a very nice view.
Desperate, we got a late-night call. Mom and Dad, most worried about the lack of a litter box in our bedroom, armed ourselves with tools and made the trek up the mountain. After discovering the lock had been installed upside down, we finally resorted to a saw. Kneeling on the floor, hearts pounding, we peered through the 7x11 panel—and there she was. Olive, staring back at us.
We repaired the panel, but that tiny moment stuck with me. For years, I carried it quietly in my mind, until recently, when I finally decided to bring it to life on that little antique panel—a painting of Olive’s gaze, frozen in time.
Sometimes inspiration sneaks in through the smallest cracks. And sometimes, it’s staring right back at you. 🖤
