frequently asked questions
Q: Where do you find your inspiration?
A: I'm fascinated by the colours & textures of feathers & fur & the fun little quirks that make each animal unique. My work combines my love of pop culture, mythology, mysticism, Steampunk, cybernetics and the natural world. Tiny fat wind-up things make me smile, I have a soft spot for cats, and I plan to take over the world with the strange & the adorable.
Q: How did you develop your painting style?
A: I have over 30 years of photorealistic drawing experience & a BFA in oil painting & photography from Cornish College of the Arts. My cats started getting into the oil paints post-graduation; so for the sake of their health & my sanity, I made the switch to a non-toxic, quick drying, water soluble medium. My watercolour technique is a self-taught process that incorporates my favourite elements of pencil & oil and includes a good bit of trial & error, unpredictability & continued experimentation.
Q: What are your materials of choice?
A: I paint primarily with watercolour & gouache on Arches fine grain cold press watercolour paper. My preferred gouache is Holbein, and my favourite watercolour brands are L'Aquarelle, Daniel Smith, Windsor Newton, Fine Tec & Poems About You's honey-based handmade pigments. I use Kuretake water brushes, super fine point Daniel Smith & Princeton brushes & Micron pens for most of my detailing. I cut my own mats, and I find most of my frames at thrift stores, antique shops & estate sales. All of my painting materials are archival & acid-free.
Q: Why cats?
A. Why not? I have 3, and they all model for me. They're cute, convenient & officially contributing members of the household.
Q: Do you have cat photos?
A: Of course! I'm pleased to introduce Ghost (left), Diesel (centre), & Earl Grey (right). They're frequent features on my social media, and you can visit 'Just Here for the Kittens' on my Patreon for exclusive behind-the-scenes photoshoots with my feline muses.
A: I'm fascinated by the colours & textures of feathers & fur & the fun little quirks that make each animal unique. My work combines my love of pop culture, mythology, mysticism, Steampunk, cybernetics and the natural world. Tiny fat wind-up things make me smile, I have a soft spot for cats, and I plan to take over the world with the strange & the adorable.
Q: How did you develop your painting style?
A: I have over 30 years of photorealistic drawing experience & a BFA in oil painting & photography from Cornish College of the Arts. My cats started getting into the oil paints post-graduation; so for the sake of their health & my sanity, I made the switch to a non-toxic, quick drying, water soluble medium. My watercolour technique is a self-taught process that incorporates my favourite elements of pencil & oil and includes a good bit of trial & error, unpredictability & continued experimentation.
Q: What are your materials of choice?
A: I paint primarily with watercolour & gouache on Arches fine grain cold press watercolour paper. My preferred gouache is Holbein, and my favourite watercolour brands are L'Aquarelle, Daniel Smith, Windsor Newton, Fine Tec & Poems About You's honey-based handmade pigments. I use Kuretake water brushes, super fine point Daniel Smith & Princeton brushes & Micron pens for most of my detailing. I cut my own mats, and I find most of my frames at thrift stores, antique shops & estate sales. All of my painting materials are archival & acid-free.
Q: Why cats?
A. Why not? I have 3, and they all model for me. They're cute, convenient & officially contributing members of the household.
Q: Do you have cat photos?
A: Of course! I'm pleased to introduce Ghost (left), Diesel (centre), & Earl Grey (right). They're frequent features on my social media, and you can visit 'Just Here for the Kittens' on my Patreon for exclusive behind-the-scenes photoshoots with my feline muses.
Q: Where can I see your art in person?
A: Conventions & galleries! I normally travel frequently for comic cons, horror shows & cat events, and I encourage supporting fellow small businesses. Check out my Exhibits & Events page for more info on upcoming appearances & scroll to the bottom of my Shop page to shop local.
Q: Do you offer original pieces for exhibit and/or wholesale for retail shops?
A: Yes! If you represent a gallery interested in showing my original work, please contact me for scheduling & availability. I also happily offer wholesale pricing for prints, cards, magnets, stickers & enamel pins. Feel free to email me with a link to your shop, and I'll send you my wholesale price list.
Q: Do you accept commissions? Can I purchase a custom portrait for a friend?
A: Happily! As long as it fits in with my style & recent bodies of work, and you have reference photos ready *before* you place your order. Please visit the Custom Pet Portraits section of my Etsy shop for more info on sizes, pricing & my process. Please be aware that I will not pester you for photos, and if you're purchasing a portrait for a friend, it is not my responsibility to contact your friend for photos. Your order will be delayed if I don't have pictures to work with at the time of purchase.
Q: Can you make prints of the pieces on your Pet Portraits page?
A: No. The rights to your pet's image is part of the custom portrait agreement, so prints of client pieces are not available for reproduction or resale without client permission. If you commission your own custom portrait, it will come with a digital file that you can use to make your own prints (for personal & gift purposes, not for resale).
Q: Are you going to paint [insert character here]?
A: Maybe! I paint what I love, so if it's a character I haven't heard of, or I'm not personally a fan, it's not likely to happen unless it's a commission. That said, I do receive *a lot* of requests, and in many cases the characters are already on my radar, I just haven't had a chance to paint them yet.
Q: Where do your Art for Charity donations go?
A: I donate 100% of proceeds from original paintings & 50% from prints & cards to the organisations listed in the descriptions of each Art for Charity piece. I started painting koalas in January 2020 to help raise awareness & funds for the Australian bushfire efforts, then wildcats to benefit local feline rescues when the pandemic struck. I'm currently creating pieces to help support my friends on the front lines of the civil rights movement.
Q: Why do you watermark your images?
A: It deters art thieves from illegally downloading, printing & profiting from my work without my consent. Art theft is sadly rampant in the online community, and I've had my images stolen more times than I can count. Not only is it illegal to use artists' work without our permission, art thieves threaten our livelihoods by exploiting art lovers & stealing sales that would otherwise support actual artists. If you see my work (or the work of any other artist you recognise) on a site that doesn't properly credit us or link back to our websites, it's probably being used illegally. Please let artists know if you come across stolen art so we can report the offenders & file official DMCA takedown notices to have the stolen content removed.
Q: Do you offer digital downloads or NFTs?
A: No. I don't license any of my work for personal downloads. Reproduction quality is important to me, and I have no control over how often digital files are printed, or what they're printed on. I've unfortunately had too much experience with online art theft to be comfortable sending hi res digital files to anyone other than my trusted production partners. I don't offer my work as NFTs either, because the negative environmental impact of current blockchain technology can't be ignored. I'm open to revisiting the possibility in the future if the industry develops a more sustainable model.
Q: Can I have your piece tattooed on me?
A: I love seeing tattoos inspired by my work! All I ask is that both you & your artist credit me as the inspiration when sharing the finished piece on social media so that we can cross-promote.
Q: Fan Art & Intellectual Property Info
A: While occasionally inspired by existing characters, my work is based on photos I take of my own cats, and the compositions are entirely my own. I respect the intellectual property (IP) of the original creators, and I take care to ensure that any fan art I create falls firmly under the categories of parody & fair use. My pop culture inspired pieces give a fun new twist to well-known characters without stepping on any IP paws, as it were.
Q: Copyright Info
A: All artworks on this website are © Braden Duncan (aka Clockwork Art) unless otherwise noted. I do not offer or license my work as NFTs. My art is not free to edit, reproduce (either entirely or in part), sell or otherwise use for monetary gain without express permission from the artist. I encourage social media sharing as long as my watermarks remain intact & proper credit is given (tagging & links to my website preferred). Art is 100% my livelihood, and sharing without credit makes it harder for folks to find & support my work. Thank you in advance for being respectful & considerate when re-posting.
A: Conventions & galleries! I normally travel frequently for comic cons, horror shows & cat events, and I encourage supporting fellow small businesses. Check out my Exhibits & Events page for more info on upcoming appearances & scroll to the bottom of my Shop page to shop local.
Q: Do you offer original pieces for exhibit and/or wholesale for retail shops?
A: Yes! If you represent a gallery interested in showing my original work, please contact me for scheduling & availability. I also happily offer wholesale pricing for prints, cards, magnets, stickers & enamel pins. Feel free to email me with a link to your shop, and I'll send you my wholesale price list.
Q: Do you accept commissions? Can I purchase a custom portrait for a friend?
A: Happily! As long as it fits in with my style & recent bodies of work, and you have reference photos ready *before* you place your order. Please visit the Custom Pet Portraits section of my Etsy shop for more info on sizes, pricing & my process. Please be aware that I will not pester you for photos, and if you're purchasing a portrait for a friend, it is not my responsibility to contact your friend for photos. Your order will be delayed if I don't have pictures to work with at the time of purchase.
Q: Can you make prints of the pieces on your Pet Portraits page?
A: No. The rights to your pet's image is part of the custom portrait agreement, so prints of client pieces are not available for reproduction or resale without client permission. If you commission your own custom portrait, it will come with a digital file that you can use to make your own prints (for personal & gift purposes, not for resale).
Q: Are you going to paint [insert character here]?
A: Maybe! I paint what I love, so if it's a character I haven't heard of, or I'm not personally a fan, it's not likely to happen unless it's a commission. That said, I do receive *a lot* of requests, and in many cases the characters are already on my radar, I just haven't had a chance to paint them yet.
Q: Where do your Art for Charity donations go?
A: I donate 100% of proceeds from original paintings & 50% from prints & cards to the organisations listed in the descriptions of each Art for Charity piece. I started painting koalas in January 2020 to help raise awareness & funds for the Australian bushfire efforts, then wildcats to benefit local feline rescues when the pandemic struck. I'm currently creating pieces to help support my friends on the front lines of the civil rights movement.
Q: Why do you watermark your images?
A: It deters art thieves from illegally downloading, printing & profiting from my work without my consent. Art theft is sadly rampant in the online community, and I've had my images stolen more times than I can count. Not only is it illegal to use artists' work without our permission, art thieves threaten our livelihoods by exploiting art lovers & stealing sales that would otherwise support actual artists. If you see my work (or the work of any other artist you recognise) on a site that doesn't properly credit us or link back to our websites, it's probably being used illegally. Please let artists know if you come across stolen art so we can report the offenders & file official DMCA takedown notices to have the stolen content removed.
Q: Do you offer digital downloads or NFTs?
A: No. I don't license any of my work for personal downloads. Reproduction quality is important to me, and I have no control over how often digital files are printed, or what they're printed on. I've unfortunately had too much experience with online art theft to be comfortable sending hi res digital files to anyone other than my trusted production partners. I don't offer my work as NFTs either, because the negative environmental impact of current blockchain technology can't be ignored. I'm open to revisiting the possibility in the future if the industry develops a more sustainable model.
Q: Can I have your piece tattooed on me?
A: I love seeing tattoos inspired by my work! All I ask is that both you & your artist credit me as the inspiration when sharing the finished piece on social media so that we can cross-promote.
Q: Fan Art & Intellectual Property Info
A: While occasionally inspired by existing characters, my work is based on photos I take of my own cats, and the compositions are entirely my own. I respect the intellectual property (IP) of the original creators, and I take care to ensure that any fan art I create falls firmly under the categories of parody & fair use. My pop culture inspired pieces give a fun new twist to well-known characters without stepping on any IP paws, as it were.
Q: Copyright Info
A: All artworks on this website are © Braden Duncan (aka Clockwork Art) unless otherwise noted. I do not offer or license my work as NFTs. My art is not free to edit, reproduce (either entirely or in part), sell or otherwise use for monetary gain without express permission from the artist. I encourage social media sharing as long as my watermarks remain intact & proper credit is given (tagging & links to my website preferred). Art is 100% my livelihood, and sharing without credit makes it harder for folks to find & support my work. Thank you in advance for being respectful & considerate when re-posting.
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