By Kathy Chouteau
Alice Dangler, 7, a second-grader at Mira Vista Elementary in Richmond, had the purr-fect answer to Spider Magazine’s recent call for cat drawings.
The national children’s magazine had called for its readers to submit an original drawing of a cat. With an assist from her mother Riva Pollard, Alice submitted her crayon-on-paper creation,“Maine Coon Kitten Comet on Alice’s Bed.” The piece was selected for publication in the February edition’s “Spider’s Corner” section.
“I saw it in Spider Magazine and I was like, ‘I’m good at drawing cats,’ so I drew a cat,” said Alice about how she found out about the opportunity to submit artwork.
And what does the honor of having her artwork featured in a magazine mean to Alice?
“It means that Comet is cute,” she said with a big smile.
When asked about her cat, Alice said that Comet is a kitten that is “a lot of months old” (9) and “is the fluffiest kitten in the whole entire world and she’s also the cutest kitten in the whole entire world and she’s also the BIGGEST kitten in the whole entire world.”
Alice likes to draw Comet a lot, but said it can be challenging sometimes because she “moves around a lot.”
The family first met their cat at the Berkeley Humane Society, and in a manner of speaking, Comet “chose” Alice. “I was just looking at her in her little cage thingey, and she looked at me and she had her paw out and she put her paw through the cage and just tapped my nose,” said Alice.
According to Alice, at first her cat’s name was “Natalie” after Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks, but then they “decided to name her Comet because she kind of looks like space.”
As Alice’s dad, Phil Dangler, explained, their cat “has a big, long tail like a comet.”
So what’s next for the budding young artist? According to her dad, Alice will be taking an art class with Lisa di Prima, a.k.a. “Miss Lisa,” at the Richmond Art Center soon.
As for her future aspirations, Alice said, “I maybe want to work at a stable, but I also want to be an artist.”
“Oh, I’m so proud of her,” said Alice’s dad when asked about her achievement. “We’re both really proud of her—and her mom did a great job sending everything in and getting everything set up. It’s just amazing.”
Click here for more info about the February 2020 edition of Spider Magazine. Click here for more info about the February 2020 edition of Spider Magazine.
Correction: The original story incorrectly stated Alice lives in Richmond, when she in fact lives in El Cerrito and attends a Richmond school. The story has been corrected.
