Cats in Art: From Prehistoric to Neo-Pop Masterpieces

by Alix Paré

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Comics

108 pages, Hardcover

Published September 3, 2024

About the author

Alix Paré, diplômée de l’École du Louvre, est conférencière spécialisée en peinture occidentale des XVIIe, XVIIIe et XXe siècles. Elle a travaillé pendant huit ans au musée du Louvre et au château de Versailles. Elle donne des cours d’histoire de l’art et intervient dans les grandes expositions parisiennes.

Alix Paré, a graduate of the Ecole du Louvre, is a lecturer specializing in Western painting of the 17th, 18th, and 20th centuries. After an eight-year tenure at both the Louvre Museum and the Palace of Versailles, she now gives art history lessons and takes part in major Parisian exhibitions.

Reviews

[Melissa]

This is a cute little mini-tour of art history that uses the cat-as-subject as the basis for a short lesson in art history. Very nicely illustrated and notated. (And yes, the famous Le Chat Noir makes an appearance.)

[Devorah]

Gift from a friend who knows me very well! This is a sweet little book with an interesting collection of cat themed artworks, many of which I was unfamiliar.

[James]

A few notable omissions in this one: I would have included John Tenniel's classic Cheshire Cat illustration (which is at least mentioned), and the lack of anything by Louis Wain is criminal, but for the most part this is a charmingly designed art book that looks at 37 examples of cats in art, stretching from the 16th century BC to present day, and assembling a roster of names that includes da Vinci, Manet, Picasso, Chagall, Warhol, and more. A nice sampling of facts and trivia and some cat-themed quotations add some further interest to the book's design.

[Carmen]

Nice tour of cats in art, mostly paintings but a couple of sculptures. I enjoyed reading about the elements in each art piece- I have never found it easy to interpret art. Each page combined a little background of the time period, the artist, and the art piece together for a nice, easy read. It was not super factual to be boring.
This collection does not venture into cartoon & cultural cats, that could be an entire book on its own, & would not have a place in this book.

[Jordan Steyer]

after the 18th century cats became too “feminine” LMAO

[Kim]

This is an interesting and fun but brief overview of art history with a focus on cats as the subject matter. It doesn't go into much detail and some terms are not explained, but I really enjoyed the art and accompanying explanations. I also love that the back of the cover is textured so it feels kind of like fur!

[Loucielago]

Love the representation of art from different parts of the world. Easy to enjoy, especially for anyone who likes cats. Timelines, maps, etc all made very easy to understand. Hard to go wrong with this.

[Alyssa]

3.5
Should've been longer. Needs more cat.

[Duncan]

Can't touch it physically; it has a cheap velvet back that made me nauseous. I wasn't expecting that. When I picked it up, the sound I made was guttural and unpleasant. I will wait for the paperback.

[Brianna Austin]

I think the best thing about this book was realizing that I do recognize art styles and could name the artist even though I haven’t seen the painting before.

[The Adventures of a French Reader]

Cats meet art in this high-quality French book which offers a brief history of cat representation in paintings/art.

If you love cats and art, then this very accessible book is the perfect read for you. It contains a trove of information, accompanied by excellent visuals.

I hope it will be one day translated into English for anglophones to enjoy! If you have at least a level B1 in French, then you can definitely give it a try ;)

Full review on my blog: https://the-literary-adventures-of-a-...

[Emma Piette]

Incredibly interesting book if you love art and cats. Some things are not deeply explained but you can look up on the internet for the exact information. It is quick and easy to read. You learn about the artists, the periods, the movement, the coutumes of the period, etc.

[Ophélie]

Le livre parfait à offrir (ou à s'offrir) à toustes les amoureux.ses des chats et de l'art !