Cats in Art: Christ in the House of Simon the Pharisee (Champaigne) (detail)

From my continuing weekly Sunday series of cats in art. I'm using some ideas from the coffee table book, The Cat in Art, by Stefano Zuffi.

Image credit here. Here we have a detail of the right foreground of Christ in the House of Simon the Pharisee, c. 1656, Philippe de Champaigne, oil on canvas, 9.6' x 13.1' (that's big!), held by Musee de Beaux-Arts, Nantes, France.

 

Zuffi tells us:

 

A charming little tabby cat often appears in the works of Philippe de Champaigne, who depicts the animal in minute detail and introduces it even in his most sacred paintings...the only figure in the painting [of a dozen or more people] that looks directly at the viewer....

 

  Charming is right.  And maybe a little grumpy.