The Many Cats of Théophile Alexandre Steinlen
A few weeks ago I was doing some research one the Art Deco and Art Nouveau styles, and, as I browsed, I kept coming upon images of cats by Théophile Alexandre Steinlen. Steinlen was a French, Art Nouveau artist who is best known for his work on posters, advertisements, and illustrations.
I wasn’t very familiar with Steinlen’s work, but, after reviewing his catalog, I realized he was fascinated with cats from an artistic perspective. In fact, he is probably most famous for his advertisement for Le Chat Noir, a Parisian nightclub that was frequented by artists and other members of the bohemian movement. This poster— which, as you can imagine, features an image of a black cat— is now iconic and is commonly sold as a decorative print.
Aside from that particular poster, Steinlen produced many drawings, paintings, and advertisements featuring cats. He even published a book of cat illustrations, which was entitled Dessins Sans Paroles Des Chats (Drawings of Cats without Words). As a lover of cats myself, I decided I need to explore Steinlen’s artistic preoccupation with cats in a little more detail.
So, why was Steinlen so obsessed with drawing and painting cats?
First of all, he just liked them. Like many of the cat people of the world, Steinlen had a great affection for cats and, thus, was naturally interested in portraying them.
However, I think that Steinlen also had a deep affinity for cats on an artistic level. Many artists from around the world are drawn to the idea of portraying cats, and I think this is because cats are intrinsically artistic animals. They are graceful, elegant creatures that capture the imagination with their precise movements. Besides, as any cat owner knows, cats are masters of twisting themselves into strange poses and positions, offering artists a whole new set of compositional choices and challenges. So, cats are naturally visually appealing and, more importantly, visually interesting.
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| Tournée du Chat Noir Source: Wikimedia Commons |
I wasn’t very familiar with Steinlen’s work, but, after reviewing his catalog, I realized he was fascinated with cats from an artistic perspective. In fact, he is probably most famous for his advertisement for Le Chat Noir, a Parisian nightclub that was frequented by artists and other members of the bohemian movement. This poster— which, as you can imagine, features an image of a black cat— is now iconic and is commonly sold as a decorative print.
Aside from that particular poster, Steinlen produced many drawings, paintings, and advertisements featuring cats. He even published a book of cat illustrations, which was entitled Dessins Sans Paroles Des Chats (Drawings of Cats without Words). As a lover of cats myself, I decided I need to explore Steinlen’s artistic preoccupation with cats in a little more detail.
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| Page from Dessins Sans Paroles Des Chats Source: Pintrest |
So, why was Steinlen so obsessed with drawing and painting cats?
First of all, he just liked them. Like many of the cat people of the world, Steinlen had a great affection for cats and, thus, was naturally interested in portraying them.
However, I think that Steinlen also had a deep affinity for cats on an artistic level. Many artists from around the world are drawn to the idea of portraying cats, and I think this is because cats are intrinsically artistic animals. They are graceful, elegant creatures that capture the imagination with their precise movements. Besides, as any cat owner knows, cats are masters of twisting themselves into strange poses and positions, offering artists a whole new set of compositional choices and challenges. So, cats are naturally visually appealing and, more importantly, visually interesting.
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| The Blue Cat Source: Wiki Gallery |
Capturing the strange movements and unique character of a cat can be quite an ambitious undertaking. Steinlen himself used cats as a vehicle for exploring different genres of art, including Realism, Art Nouveau, and Post-Impressionism. Cats were a familiar subject to Steinlen, giving him the freedom to experiment with different artistic styles and assess their benefits and drawbacks on an even playing field.
That being said, the cat also had significance on a symbolic level. In an excellent essay entitled “War, Socialism, and Cats: Théophile-Alexandre Steinlen's Political Artistic Practice,” the Metropolitan Museum of Art explains that, at the time, depicting cats was a political statement for Steinlen. Like many artists living in Paris at that time, he was very much involved in the bohemian lifestyle and was an avowed leftist. Steinlen was a socialist and a strong proponent of rights for working people. As the MET explains, “cats were symbolic of bohemia and, more specifically, bohemian women. The fact that many Parisian cats lived in Montmartre, free of bourgeois domestication, was perceived as a metaphor for modern bohemia, or the refusal of bourgeois social norms of that time...Steinlen used works like these to explore the potentials of bohemian life unobstructed by capitalist Paris.”
Thus, it is safe to say that Steinlen’s approach to cats was multi-pronged. His artistic connection to them was driven by his personal affection for the animals, but also by his own political and social views. On a personal level, I find his paintings and drawings to be endlessly charming. His work certainly captures the natural grace and dignity (and inherent humor) of the cat.
Disclaimer: I’m not an art historian or an expert on this topic. The above is my opinion, based on my interpretation of my foreknowledge of art and history. If I’ve done any additional research, I’ll note it above.
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| Three Cats on a Sofa Source: Harvard Art Museums |
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| Summer, Cat on a Balustrade Source: MoMA |
Disclaimer: I’m not an art historian or an expert on this topic. The above is my opinion, based on my interpretation of my foreknowledge of art and history. If I’ve done any additional research, I’ll note it above.
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