Artist Creates Ameowzing Cat Portraits with Layers of Fine Colored Sand

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Just as each cat is unique in the world, so, too, is each artist. Combine the two, and it’s simply meowgical! Here’s the story of a unique artist, Chie, from Redondo Beach, who leaves us in awe using a medium of colorful but otherwise ordinary tiny grains of sand. Her “Sand Devotion” pieces perfectly capture the love and devotion she has for her art and feline meowdels.

Chie’s work has been featured on Peppa Pig, BuzzFeed Spotlight and Simple Life.

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Images and media via Instagram/sanddevotion

Artist Chie ‘Draws’ Cat Portraits with Sand

Like sands through the hourglass, our time with our cats is precious. The time goes by so fast and yet our companions enrich our lives forever. Maybe that’s why there’s something unexpectedly touching about seeing a cat’s realistic portrait depicted in something as fluid as sand grains.

As for the skill and patience it takes to create such a portrait, well, it’s certainly impressive! For the vast majority of folks, attempting such a portrait would be a “Nailed It!” moment, much like the embroidered beadwork cat portraits we recently shared by an artist from Russia.

Sure, many of us tried our hand at such projects in art class, but the results were nothing we’d want to frame on our wall!

Chie, pictures of her work in homes via Facebook

Images via Facebook/ Sand Devotion

Does the Artwork Last or Disappear?

Somehow, Chie is able to reveal delicate tufts of cat fur, sparkling eyes with crisp edges, and whispy whiskers out of sand. But does it last?

Fortunately, Chie is able to seal the portrait with a special glue on top so that the sand stays compacted down in place. And the artwork is sealed securely behind glass.

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A sand art piece in progress

In the example below, she framed the portrait for a wall hanging. Although this one is a classic in black, white, and blue eyes, others are multi-colored. For example, check out the kitten she created below via YouTube.

In all, the portrait below took over 30 hours of work.If you can believe it, this was her very first framed sand portrait!

Video via Instagram/sanddevotion

Sand Art Portrait of Two Fluffy Cats

For one of her next projects, Chie worked for an amazing 80 hours to render an exquisite portrait of two real-life floofy kitties. At only 10 inches by 8 inches, it’s not large, and yet the detail inside the frame are remarkable!

Thank goodness that the finished artwork is preserved inside the elegant, freestanding glass frame. Although it’s sand, it won’t shift and become a muddy mess. But viewed from the back, it looks much like what the results would be if we tried to do this at home! (A Nailed It! moment.)

Drawing with Gravity

When one of artist’s followers on TikTok said they would cry if they spent so much time on a piece and accidentally knocked it over, the artist confirmed she has done it once before! Can you imagine?

“To be honest, making pet portraits out of sand is not easy,” she wrote. “The big difference from drawing is that you need to deal with gravity the whole time.”

“Shapes shift really easy and if the eyes shift just 0.1mm, all aspects will change. Also, you can’t erase easily like you’re using an eraser 😅 but that’s why I love sand art🥰,” Chie shared.