The Cat: 3500 Years of the Cat in Art Hardcover – October 18, 2011

Beautiful book; good history.

Once I saw this beautiful collection, I had to own it. Never mind that I have quite a few other books about cats; this thorough collection is inspiring. Not only are the photographs beautiful, the book is a tribute to my favorite animal. While I was already aware of a number of ways cats have appeared in art in Egypt and Japan and other cultures, what surprised me the most was learning about the breadth of "cat art"--in Greek mosaics, Peruvian ceramics, and illustrated manuscripts. I was also surprised to find a cat by Klee and another featured in a painting by Picasso. A few big cats are included as well.D.R. Ransdell, author of "The Secret Lives of the Pink House Cats."

While I enjoyed the quality of the images in the book, and the thematic arrangement, I was disappointed in its limited scope in both time and geography. The book really should be titled "The Cat Primarily in European Art From the 14th Through the 18th Century." There is a brief chapter of images from ancient Egypt and the Roman Empire, and a scattering of images in the first couple of chapters from Japan and China. That's pretty much it in terms of non-European art. There is little North American art, three or four Russian images, and almost no Near East, Latin American or African images. It is very clear that the author's expertise and interest is in British, French, and Dutch art, especially from the 1400s through the 1800s. The scholarship and commentary on these images is impressive (in parts too detailed and dull); her remarks on images from other parts of the world is cursory and shallow.

As the center of interest or merely a bystander, the cat features in art from different periods and cultures. Fascinating to see how the art changes but not the look or behaviors of the cats. The artists often use the cat to add a message or meaning to the images and this conveys so much about the artist and the culture. A good book for people interested in art history and/or cats!

If you’re a cat lover, this is a really interesting book with great historical references and fantastic pictures. In fact, this is my second copy that I bought so I can cut out pics and frame them!

We saw this book when we were at the National Gallery in London. We considered buying it there but did not because it was so large and heavy. When we got home, I found it on the Internet for a MUCH better price than in London. I am very glad I waited until I got home to buy it.

This is a fascinating and beautiful book, with a huge number of well chosen works. Although the works are chosen because of their feline subjects, the well-written text puts the works into historical, social, and artistic perspective.

Love the book!

An absolute gem of a book. Informative, large beautiful images of the work. Quite outstanding.

intelligent, scrupulously researched, outstanding anthology acts as painlessly educational history of art and survey of a huge spectrum of attitudes towards and attachments to our most ubiquitous domestic animal companion.

Lovely book, saw it at the RA but much cheaper here. If you like cats and or art, then this is the book to have. Lovely prints of cats through the ages from ancient China to the present day. A pleasing purchase.

This beautifully presented book was given as a gift to a cat lover who was delighted, wonderful pictures and illustrations.

Absolutely fantastic book! Very nice photos and descriptions. The book is even more informative and illustrated than I expected. Thanks a lot!