Cats in Art: Kittens at Play (Desportes)

From my continuing weekly Sunday series of cats in art.  Having moved on from Stefano Zuffi's marvelous work, The Cat in Art, I am now using some ideas from Caroline Bugler's equally impressive book, The Cat/3500 Years of the Cat in Art.  

This'll be the third of several Alexandre-Francois Desportes paintings that will be featured here.

Image credit The Great Cat, Kittens at Play,  Alexandre-Francois Desportes, no other information available, held in a private collection.

Of the four kittens painted here by Desportes around 1700, the three in the front are complaining about something, or perhaps three distinct somethings.  But it's the kitty in the back--who also seems a tad needy, but not as much as its compadres--that draws my attention.

Desportes renders this adorable kitten in a manner worthy of a 2016 first-class adoption promotion.  If I were looking for a kitty, that one would be it.

Looking at the entire image, Desportes captures so well the nuances of cat bodies: the texture and pattern of the fur, the mouth, the eyes, the paws....He must have been a cat "owner."

[Gary note: With my Cats in Arts posts, I encourage you to scope out the art appreciation site Artsy (I have no financial interest in the site, I just like it), where you can explore many aspects of the world of art.  You'll certainly be entertained and enlightened!]

Cats in Art: Still Life With Cat (Desportes)

From my continuing weekly Sunday series of cats in art.  Having moved on from Stefano Zuffi's marvelous work, The Cat in Art, I am now using some ideas from Caroline Bugler's equally impressive book, The Cat/3500 Years of the Cat in Art.  

This'll be the second of several Alexandre-Francois Desportes paintings that will be featured here.

Image credit The Great Cat, Still Life With Cat,  Alexandre-Francois Desportes, no other information available, held by the Liverpool Walker Gallery.

This image comes from the same web site as last week, but unfortunately I have been unable to discern any more information about the date and size of the painting.  I just know that the kitty is being very opportunistic...in other words, just being a cat.

[Gary note: With my Cats in Arts posts, I encourage you to scope out the art appreciation site Artsy (I have no financial interest in the site, I just like it), where you can explore many aspects of the world of art.  You'll certainly be entertained and enlightened!]

Cats in Art: Cat and Dead Game (Desportes)

From my continuing weekly Sunday series of cats in art.  Having moved on from Stefano Zuffi's marvelous work, The Cat in Art, I am now using some ideas from Caroline Bugler's equally impressive book, The Cat/3500 Years of the Cat in Art.  

This'll be the first of several Alexandre-Francois Desportes paintings that will be featured here.

Image credit The Great Cat, Cat and Dead Game,  Alexandre-Francois Desportes, ca 1700-1750, oil on canvas, dimensions unknown, held in a private collection.

Typically here I place a close-up of the the cat image, though in this case there is no need for a kitty close-up: the cat pretty much fills this painting.

This is an absolutely gorgeous painting.  The bride and I having once had a beautiful black and white kitty, I suppose I might be biased a bit towards such cats.  But gorgeous seems to be the only word that does this painting justice.  The cat is perfectly rendered, with outstanding detail of the fur, the face, the feet, the eyes, the whiskers.... I guess you get the idea that I kinda love this painting!  I would love to see it in person to be able to scope out the actual brushstrokes.

However, the sad part of this painting is that it is held in a private collection.  Without sounding too much like Indiana Jones, it belongs in a museum for all the world to see.

Note that back in 2010 I did another Desportes painting, much better known, called Cats Attacking Dead Game.  Here's the link for you to click over and enjoy!

[Gary note: With my Cats in Arts posts, I encourage you to scope out the art appreciation site Artsy (I have no financial interest in the site, I just like it), where you can explore many aspects of the world of art.  You'll certainly be entertained and enlightened!]

Cats in Art: The Cat's Medicine

From my continuing weekly Sunday series of cats in art.  Having moved on from Stefano Zuffi's marvelous work, The Cat in Art, I am now using some ideas from Caroline Bugler's equally impressive book, The Cat/3500 Years of the Cat in Art.  

Image credit San Diego Museum of Art, The Cat's Medicine,  Jan Steen, ca 1663, oil on panel, 22" x 18", held by San Diego Museum of Art.

And the kitty close-up:

Bugler comments:

It is difficult to tell whether the cat is delighted, or is struggling to free itself from the clasp of the girl, who is simply imitating the practices of her elders.  Either way, being fed a spoonful of soup must surely be a better bet for a cat than being given a reading lesson.

The reference, of course, is to another Jan Steen painting, which I blogged about here, back in 2011.  You really must click on over!

Back to this one: the cat seems to be reaching for the spoon, which makes me think that whatever is in the spoon must be pretty good.  Once again, a group of happy Dutch kids.  Seems like the 1600s in the Netherlands was the Golden Age of child happiness!


[Gary note: With my Cats in Arts posts, I encourage you to scope out the art appreciation site Artsy (I have no financial interest in the site, I just like it), where you can explore many aspects of the world of art.  You'll certainly be entertained and enlightened!]