Students, a tiger, and a bear — Oh, My!

Laguna College of Art & Design took figure drawing to a whole new level March 31, when a Russian Grizzly bear named Cheyenne and Siberian tiger Shirkon struck a pose.

The acting animals arrived courtesy of Amazing Animal Productions, and sprawled on the lawn area of the campus while students took photographs and sketched.

The college has brought in exotic live animals for the past five years, including a horse, lion, leopard and chimpanzees, for all their students to draw and observe.

Sixteen-month-old Cheyenne has appeared on shows including the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Dirty Jobs.

Shirkon, only 8 months old, who has been seen in a Got Milk? commercial, will appear later this month on the Tonight Show and is preparing for filming an upcoming Jack Black film.

The idea is spearheaded by Animation Chairman David Kuhn.

“A good animator is first and foremost an observer,” he said.

“Convincing animation always begins with studying our subject, whether human or animal, and looking for aspects of their behavior which will bring out their personality,” Kuhn said.

“When I was animating Meeko the raccoon in ‘Pocahontas,’ I just couldn’t find the reference I needed for him shaking off water,” he said.

“I finally realized that my cat would make a great stand-in “” if I gave him a bath. It ended up being just what I was looking for. My cat, however, remains unconvinced of the sacrifices necessary for art.”

For more information on the school, visit www.lcad. edu.