Familiars of Fortune - Lucky Tilcayo đź”´ SOLD
Oil, acrylic and gold leaf on cradled wooden birch panel, 20x30x3cm. Fluorescent paint detailing that shows by backlight can be seen in additions photos. Comes with Lucky Cat pendant featured and palette used to create the piece. Contact us at info@louisemcnaught.com for purchase details.
The Lucky Tilcayo celebrates one of nature’s newest revelations , Leopardus tilcayo, a tiny, elusive wild cat from the cloud forests of Bolivia. Known locally long before science formally recognised it, the Tilcayo was only described as a distinct species in 2026, making it a wonderful symbol of discovery, hidden treasures and the mysteries of the natural world still waiting to reveal themselves.
Reimagined here as a wild Maneki-neko, its raised paw beckons luck, prosperity and opportunity, while the golden plaque bearing 福 (fuku) represents good fortune, happiness and blessings. The gold-leaf halo elevates this diminutive cat into a sacred Familiar, surrounded by my fluorescent pink aura, representing the unseen energy connecting all living things.
The lightning references the traditional lucky-cat legend in which a beckoning cat draws a samurai away from danger shortly before lightning strikes the place where he had been sheltering. Here it becomes a symbol of protection, intervention and those seemingly insignificant moments that can completely alter our path.
The white flower and mossy rocks evoke the Tilcayo’s home in the Bolivian Yungas, the lush cloud forests on the eastern slopes of the Andes. They represent life flourishing unseen, resilience and precious things hidden within the wild.
Most importantly, the Tilcayo itself carries a particularly fitting message. Its lineage had existed independently for around 1.4 million years before science recognised what it was. It therefore becomes a talisman for being seen, revelation and recognising value that has always been there, a reminder that just because something has not yet been discovered, named or understood does not mean it isn’t extraordinary.
