Cats in art: How can the canvases and hearts caught with Mustachioed

Today, everyone sent a photo or video to their friends or relatives at least once. And whoever does not do it – let me be the first to throw me stones. Today we will talk about a cat trail in history and art. Monument with human faces is much deeper than medieval cats. And this topic is far from the comic book, because you can watch how the views on nature, religion and even the human vars have changed through cat images.

Ekaterina Andreeva is the Creator of Yaandart Art Project

When and how a man domesticated the cat, the question is clear. Most likely, this took place between 7000 and 4500 BC. However, it is known that the first civilizations like the ancient Egyptians were treated with special respects.

This is reflected in the art of that period. Considering the sacred animals, the Egyptians admired the dexterity and independence of cats. The gods and goddesses depicted with cat characteristics: Bast, Sehmet, Tafnut, Mafetet and Svesmet. Cats were included in embossed images, painted papyrus and even decorated tombs.

Egyptian cats were associated with militancy and power. Their separation from life was perceived as a serious loss – Herodotus wrote about it. The Egyptians not only embalmed dead pets, but also shaved their eyebrows as a sign of mourning. And they can even execute a sacred animal to kill.

In ancient times, people were not indifferent to cats. They were brought to Greece and Rome in the 5th century BC. Elephant-navigators and violence traders. The first proof of the existence of cats in Greek houses, depicting a person playing with a cat. The middle of the 5th century is the coin money. In addition to coins, cats left a mark in ancient Roman art – they can be found in mosaics and tombstones.

However, the medieval real “cat” period was. Apparently no other period, even in the 21st century, did not give us a wide range of images with rich symbols. The devilization that reflects all the contradictions of a medieval world view is the image of a balanced cat between a utilitarian function and an ironic game.

Cats in medieval images can be divided into three categories: ordinary, funny and demonized. In the interiors of rich houses, it was often depicted as a symbol of status. The presence of a cat surrounded by care and good nutrition meant that the owner could afford to keep the animal like this without a utilitarian target. For example, in the fresco of the “secret party, Pietro Lorenzetti, the cat settles easily next to the fireplace and eats the remnants from the plate next to the dog. They do not play the role of a plot, but they emphasize that the action takes place at the house of a rich man.

Medieval manuscripts are full of pictures where monks and nuns are surrounded by cats. Most of the time, they can be seen in the fields of the clock, as if the authors of the books have paid tribute to them. For example, in a miniature of the 15th century, St. Matthew next to the cat, probably his friend.

However, the attitude towards cats in the Middle Ages was far from being clear. In the sermons, it was often mentioned in a negative way. XIV Century John Broid’s British preacher, while the poor were hunger, condemned the content of cats in wealthy citizens, considering the excessive -fed accessories of the rich.

In medieval culture, cats were not only cute pets, but also creatures that caused fear and superstition. They were particularly associated with blacks, devil, witchcraft and perverted cults. In the theses of the XIV – XV centuries, such as “Hallowers of Witches, Cats are identified as familiarity, the souls of the souls – according to beliefs.

But that’s not all. Medieval writers were equipped with an allegorical sense, not in the most proud direction to cats. In Bintiaria – the collections of animal definitions – lies, hypocrisy and lust. XII. The “Aberdeen Bestiaria” of the century is compared with the devil, which is murmured to deceive the spirit.

Cats were also associated with laziness. They sleep peacefully in the illustrations of the psalms, and this is not just a home scene – their symbolisms were emphasized in this way. Lie cat opposed ants and bees that personalize the virtuous work in the Christian tradition.

In Renaissance art, cats were not only available, but also had a deep symbolic meaning. For example, in the engraving of Albrecht Dürer “Adam and Eve (1504), they become part of a complex allegory. Around the first people, animals gathered, personized different human temperaments: a cat – anger and irritability, a rabbit – hope, bull – calm and a elk – melancholy. However, since the composition depicts the original moment of sin, the pussy and mouse here symbolize the lust of men and women, while the parrot is the supreme love. Dürer arranges the details: The tail of the cat is about the heel of Eve, who pointed to sin and fertility, and the man seems to be stepping into the mouse in the “Cat Mouse”, where people appear to be pawns.

We see the same idea in the subsequent works of Hendrick Goltsius (1616) of the “Human Sphere” (1616): The cat is again invading the central place that personifies lust and desire. In general, in the Renaissance, cats had a suspicious reputation. For example, in the fresco of Domencian Giandayo “Secret Office” in San Marko Monastery, the cat was not added by chance. The artist sets Judah separately from the rest of the ambassadors, emphasizes his betrayal and puts him with a cat – a traditional symbol of insidious and betrayal.

However, cats can be not only ominous characters, but also only cats. Leonardo da Vinci often described them in the sketches. In one of the compositions of Mad Madonna with a baby ”, Jesus is in the hands of a fluffy cat. Obviously, we’re talking about a hot home moment, not evil. In another drawing, Da Vinci “twenty cats” (about 1513) examines the grace and movement of these animals in detail. Through such studies, Leonardo is attributed to the phrase “Even the smallest cat is a masterpiece ((although it is in question).

Therefore, there was everyone in the art of revival cats, from the symbol of evil charm to the inspiration of the great masters.

When did cats finally conquered the place of pets in European culture? The first serious steps in this direction began in the 18th century, and one of the main “lawyers of cats, French writer Francois Augusten de Paradis de Moncrif. In 1727, “History of Cats” – defending animals, especially referring to Egypt, “History of Cats” – beautiful and satirical works published. However, not all readers caught a satirical connotation and the book was harshly criticized. However, it was counted as an attempt to find the reputation of cats – Moncrif was one of the first speaking about cats as valuable friends.

Luis Wayne, the real ambassador of cats in art. XIX – XX At the beginning of the Centuries, the Victorian era and Edward played an important role in changing the perception of cats in England. Until then, cats were perceived as hunters only for rodents – from a utilitarian point of view. The brutal treatment with them was a common thing that was reflected in the art of that time. But Wayne, the president of the National Cat Club, used art to make cats with domestic animals.

Anthropomorphic drawings – Cats play cards, newspaper reading, musicians – made them understandable for a beautiful and wide audience. These images created a cultural narrative in the newspapers, postcards and children’s books for the first time in the centuries, where cats have become the personality of homemade comfort, intelligence and even secular behavior. In fact, Wayne transformed them into heroes of mass culture and foresee our modern obsession with cats with internet breast.

This is the power of art: the same monster, but for centuries, how many images and meaning has been!