Poes - The Cat in Art and Photography

How the Cat catches the Human. For an artist, a cat represents art itself: cuddly and dangerous, graceful and sphinx-like, pure and mysterious. What role did cats play in earlier societies? Recent research shows that about 10,000 years ago, cats chose to bond with humans. Egyptian culture is the first to depict cats on a large scale. But cats are also discussed in other religions: the Prophet Muhammad is said to have a special bond with his cat, and in Cyprus in the Middle Ages there was a 'cat monastery', where monks cared for cats. From the twelfth century onwards, cats in Europe were increasingly associated with the devil and witchcraft. The devil sometimes appeared in the form of a cat, and sometimes witches themselves transformed into cats to get into 'mischief'. The cat would carry that bad reputation for centuries to come.

This richly illustrated book highlights the unique relationship between humans and cats. The special link between women and cats, the often obscene double bottoms in works of art and the dual meaning of the word '(frolic)cat' are also extensively highlighted. In a playful, visual way, recent scientific insights enter into dialogue with historical and contemporary art and photography. Nine chapters and more than 200 photographs from numerous international collections offer a view of the cat as a pet, god, devil, wife, muse, colleague, giant, Very Important Pussy and friend. With texts by Onno Blom, Sandrin Coorevits, Jo Coucke, Marjan Doom, Hannelore Franck and Delphine Lecompte.