Meerkats Standing Lookout on Their Mound Coloring Page

Four meerkats stand shoulder to shoulder along the crest of their mound, upright on their back legs with their front paws tucked in against their chests. Each one faces a slightly different way, which turns a row of identical animals into a group with something to do. Dark patches ring their eyes and short strokes run down their backs and flanks to suggest a coarse coat, thinning out toward the pale bellies. Those bellies are the biggest open areas on the sheet and they hold a light sandy tone nicely. The mound below them is a broad smooth dome drawn with just a few contour lines, and the burrow opening at its base arrives filled in solid black. That is not a mistake to work around but a gift. It gives the picture a strong dark anchor at the bottom, so you can keep every other tone on the page light and the composition still holds together. The sky above is completely blank. Leaving it white keeps the attention on the four faces where it belongs.