Santa's Quiet Time

Santa dozing in a gold armchair beside a lit tree, his lap and arm heaped with sleeping puppies (a beagle, a dachshund, a cocker spaniel and a golden), while kittens curl on the chair back and along the floor. A plate of iced, tree-shaped biscuits sits on the little table at his elbow.

Warm firelight and Santa's red suit give strong blocks of colour to build from before the shadowed background. Finished size 69 x 49cm.