Rescued kitten makes her way into Ah Guo's art

The Singapore artist found PiPa, the tricolour cat with a half-black, half-brown face, by the roadside in July

- Joanne Soh Lifestyle Correspondent

His daily evening routine is scheduled around the needs of nearly 20 community cats, scattered across his Ang Mo Kio neighbourhood.

Now, renowned local artist Lee Kow Fong, better known as Ah Guo, has to readjust his schedule because of PiPa, a kitten he rescued in July.

The four-month-old female tricolour cat with a distinctive half-black, half-brown face is playful and often disturbs Lee when he is drawing, he says.

The 54-year-old illustrator famed for his watercolour artwork that depicts everyday scenes and people in Singapore has to schedule around PiPa’s afternoon nap, using the hours from around noon to 5pm to work uninterrupted while she sleeps.

Within weeks of her becoming a member of his family, the kitten was launched on Lee’s social media account, swiftly joining his list of animal characters: penguin Xiao P, rabbit MoMo, hedgehog Poppy and the big feline Kit Cat.

Some drawings of PiPa include her celebrating National Day and Deepavali.

"I'm slowly introducing PiPa as another cat in my artwork because Kit Cat is already a regular character," says the animal-loving picture-book author, who has owned hamsters and guinea pigs over the years.