Carl Kahler MY WIFE'S LOVERS. 1893.
The painting was created in 1891-1893 by order of the American millionaire Kate Birdsell Johnson (1833-1893). Presumably, the name was given by her husband, Robert Johnson - although he died in Paris in 1889, even before work on the painting began.
The painting, which depicts 42 cats on a larger scale, is the largest canvas depicting these animals - its size is 180; 260 cm, total weight - 103 kilograms. Cat Magazine called it "the world's greatest cat painting"
In the center of the composition is the cat Sultan, bought by Johnson for 3 thousand dollars during a trip to Paris.
Johnson kept various birds, as well as 350 cats and cats, fifty of which were thoroughbred Persian and Angora (according to other sources, total cats did not exceed fifty, and at the time of the owner's death it was 32). A special staff of servants who looked after the house also took care of the animals.
The painting was completed in March 1893, and her client died of pneumonia the same year, on December 2, 1893.
Among the heirs was mentioned Helen Shellard (Helen Shellard), who received 20 thousand dollars (at present, this amount corresponds to about 525 thousand dollars). As it turned out, Helen Shellard was a distant relative of Kate Johnson, and even before Kate's death, the women agreed that she would take care of the cats. Which Shellard did. True, for this she had to ask to move out two tenants, to whom she had previously rented rooms in her house. Cats settled in the vacated premises, and one of the rooms was allocated as an isolation room for the sick, who were visited by a specially invited veterinarian. The further fate of the cats is unknown
Having never painted cats before, Carl Kahler spent nearly three years at the Johnson estate studying and sketching their postures and habits. Whether he had any personal relationship with Kate Johnson is unknown.
As a fee, the artist received 5 thousand dollars, in addition to a large canvas, he painted several more works - in particular, a “portrait” of a cat named Her Majesty. Upon completion, the painting was exhibited at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, where it "made a sensation"
After the death of Johnson, who had no children and even before the death of her husband, who had lost her adopted daughter, her property was put up for auction, and Ernest Hackett bought the painting in early 1894 for his art salon in San Francisco. This Palace of Art Salon was destroyed by the 1906 earthquake. The painting remained intact, while its author, the artist Karl Kahler, died during the earthquake.
Throughout the 20th century, the canvas repeatedly changed its owners. In the 1940s, it belonged to the Julian couple, owners of the Julian Art Galleries. They exhibited the painting around the country along with a traveling cat show, including in New York, at Madison Square Garden. The canvas was popular: during this period, about 9 thousand of its reproductions were sold.
In November 2015, at Sotheby's, the painting was sold for $826,000 to a private buyer from Los Angeles, and due to the heavy weight of the canvas, a special wall had to be built to display it in the auction room.
In 2015, a painting was sold at Sotheby's, which was called "the world's greatest canvas depicting cats." She claims for such a title in three parameters at once: the size, the number of depicted cats and the price.
The painting is called "My Wife's Lovers" (oil on canvas, 177.8 by 258.4 centimeters). She weighs 103 kilograms, so the workers auction house were forced to specially strengthen the wall on which this picture was hung.
For seven years, Kahler painted racehorses in Australia and New Zealand, and in 1891 he visited San Francisco and met Kate Birdsall Johnson, a very wealthy woman who was involved in charity work and collecting art.
Back in 1880, during a trip to Europe, Kate Birdsall saw and fell in love with Angora cats. As a result, over the past years, a fairly significant number of pets, all possible color variations of the Angora breed, turned out to be in her house.
Carl Kahler. My wife's lovers. 1891
Kate Johnson invited the artist to visit her Vacation home"Buena Vista". This estate is interesting in itself: the building was the oldest winery in California, but in late XIX century, production was closed. Kate Birdsall and her husband, however, kept all the equipment, finding the wine presses an interesting piece of furniture. Therefore, in the future, the winery reopened and is still operating.
On the estate, Karl Kahler met 42 cats and was commissioned to create them. group portrait. The artist planned to travel from San Francisco to Yosemite national park and draw waterfalls there, but could not resist the charm of cats and the promised fee.
He started with sketches, depicting each of the cats in a variety of poses, then moved on to work on the main canvas. The whole process took the artist about two years.
It is said that the title "My Wife's Lovers" was given to the painting by Keith Johnson's husband. This is not entirely true. Robert Johnson died in 1889, before work on the painting began. But he used this expression in relation to the cats living in the house, and it became a favorite joke in the family. Perhaps Kate decided to give this name to the painting in memory of her husband.
The painting was completed by the spring of 1891. Kahler depicted all the cats in dynamic poses. (It is claimed that there are indeed 42 of them, but, having tried to count them, several times I counted from 38 to 41 cats. For those who want to find all the cats, I give a link to the image big size). The cat in the center of the picture is called Sultan, he was bought by Kate Johnson in Paris for three thousand dollars.
Next to the Sultan lies His Highness - White cat With blue eyes. His Highness was also depicted by Kaler in a separate painting, where he sits on a table covered with a blue cloth embroidered in the Japanese style.
Kate Johnson agreed to show the painting at the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago. Here we can see that pictures with cats were very popular long before the invention of the Internet and social networks. The picture gathered crowds of spectators and caused numerous responses in the newspapers.
Postcard from world exhibition 1893 in Chicago
But Kate Johnson did not rejoice at the success of her pets at the exhibition for long. He died of pneumonia on December 3, 1893. After her death, absolutely fantastic details appeared in various publications for a long time. They wrote that the number of her cats by the end of her life reached either 200 or 350, and also that she bequeathed 500,000 dollars to the cats. All this is not true. It is known that as of February 1, 1894, the population of the colony was 32 cats.
The rest either fled after the death of the mistress, or were taken to other families. According to the will, the cats did not receive anything. Most of the inheritance catholic church to open a hospital in the city "for all sick poor women and children, regardless of religion, nationality and skin color."
The hospital was built, then destroyed in the earthquake of 1906, but rebuilt and now functions under the name Seton Medical Center.
Among other heirs was mentioned Helen Shellard (Helen Shellard), who received 20 thousand dollars (at present, this amount corresponds to about 525 thousand dollars). As it turned out, Helen Shellard was a distant relative of Kate Johnson, and even before Kate's death, the women agreed that she would take care of the cats. Which Shellard did.
True, for this she had to ask to move out two tenants, to whom she had previously rented rooms in her house. Cats settled in the vacated rooms, and one of the rooms was allocated for an isolation room for the sick, who were visited by a specially invited veterinarian.
The fate of the cats is unknown. As for the painting, it was bought in 1894 at a sale by art dealer Ernest Haquette. He soon opened the "Palace of Arts" in San Francisco, where, which was new for that time, a gallery and a cafe were combined in one room.
The painting "My Wife's Lovers" also became an adornment of the "Palace of Arts". The establishment was very popular with representatives high society who went there to enjoy both exquisite cuisine and works of art.
In 1906, as we have already mentioned, there was a devastating earthquake in San Francisco. The "Palace of Arts" survived, but after the tremors, another disaster began in the city - fires. It was the fire that destroyed most San Francisco, including Ernest Aket's. But the picture with cats fortunately survived.
Soon she was acquired by another gallery owner, then she changed several more owners, exhibited in private galleries in San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Chicago, Detroit. In the 1940s, it was owned by art collectors Mr. and Mrs. Julian.
They showed the painting at a major cat show in Madison Square Garden, where it outshone many living cats. Crowds of spectators again flocked to her, reporters wrote about her, and the number of reproductions sold was nine thousand.
One of these reproductions was purchased by the current owner of the painting. He preferred to remain incognito, but said that he gave the Madison Square Garden reproduction to his mother, who liked the picture so much that she hung over her bed for the rest of her days.
Now, in memory of his mother, this man decided to buy the original. At the auction, he paid $826,000 for a painting by Karl Kahler, almost three times the pre-sale estimate.
Contemporary art connoisseurs pay tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars at auctions for Picasso's cubic women, for Malevich's Suprematist compositions, for abstract painting Kandinsky. However, there are canvases for which collectors are also willing to pay a considerable amount. These are pictures of cats. This review contains the top 6 most expensive paintings with cats sold at global art market auctions.
Source: JJournal/platinym
6th place: Jan Feit (1611-1661). "Still life with a hare, game and a cat" - 221 thousand dollars
Dutch painter and engraver Jan Fyt lived in XVII century and painted the so-called hunting still lifes depicting animals and birds. His paintings are realistic and detailed, very colorful and harmonious, and the subjects are taken from hunting life. On his canvases, the artist mainly depicted game, hounds and greyhounds. The painter and cats did not bypass his attention.
The canvas “Still Life with a Hare, Game and a Cat” depicts the prey of a hunter and a cat-thief, pulling a paw after a dead bird. This painting was sold for 221 thousand US dollars at Sotheby's.
5th place. Henriette Ronner-Kniep (1821-1909). "Playing kittens" - 429 thousand dollars
Dutch animal artist Henriette Ronner-Knip began painting at the age of 5, and by the age of 6 she became a diligent student of her father. And very soon she had to become his indispensable assistant, as her father began to quickly go blind and could not prescribe small parts. And from the age of 16, she already took care of their daily bread big family on one's own.
At first creative career Henrietta painted mostly landscapes and still lifes. But then animals began to appear on her canvases. She gave preference to dogs, and when a cat appeared in the artist's house, she enthusiastically began to draw her and other cute fluffies. And these paintings brought a very good income. Henrietta had solid customers among the royal families of Portugal and Belgium.
Her painting of a mother cat and frolicking kittens was sold at an art auction in 2006 for $429,000 to an unknown buyer.
Curious Kitten (1893). Wood, oil. 11×10 cm.
By the way, a miniature painting on wood measuring 11 × 10 centimeters "Curious Kitten", written in 1893, went to auction in 2009 for 29 thousand dollars.
4th place. Liu Ye (born 1964). "Meow" - 601 thousand dollars
Representatives of the modern Chinese art today occupy a significant place in world culture. So, the artist Liu Ye from Beijing draws animated pictures with slightly strange plots. Some of his works are reminiscent of illustrations for children's books, while others are made in the style of abstract art. All the artist's work is focused on the emotions of the master himself, on the inner perception of the world around him.
One of his most expensive creations was the painting "Meow", depicting a girl with a kitten. The plot of this work is very strange, but this did not stop it from being sold at an art auction for 601,000 dollars.
Andy Warhol - famous American artist and the founder of commercial pop art, a prominent figure in the history of the pop art movement and contemporary art generally. At one time, for many years, Warhol was the center of the New York art scene, despite the fact that in life he was a very private person.
But the artist had a passion for cats, which he adored immensely. It was said that Warhol systematically got Siamese cats, of which his house was full, while he indiscriminately called all of them Sams. Warhol often made sketches of his pets in static poses, as moving objects were difficult for him. Later, these sketches became illustrations of the famous album "25 cats named Sam and one blue cat", published in 1954.
But the most expensive creation of Warhol on a cat theme was the painting "Cats and Dogs (Broadway)", which went from Sotheby's auction for 701 thousand US dollars.
2nd place. Carl Kahler (1855-1906). My Wife's Lovers - $826,000
A huge canvas depicting 42 cats belongs to the brush of the Austrian artist Carl Kahler. In 1891, a wealthy lady, a great lover of cats, Kate Birdsall Johnson, wanted to perpetuate her pets on a huge canvas. More than 300 cats lived in her mansion in California, but only 42 of them were honored to remain in history. The artist spent 3 years writing this canvas.
In 2015, a painting weighing 100 kilograms and very impressive in size - 2.6 meters long and 1.8 meters high - was sold for 826 thousand dollars to a buyer who wished to remain anonymous.
The initial price of the lot was $500,000. Due to the heavy weight, the organizers of the auction could not attach this canvas to the wall. They had to build a special structure for this exhibit.
The undoubted leader in this top is work genius Picasso- "Dora Maar with a cat", created in 1941 and dedicated to the French artist and Picasso's mistress. This is one of the most unusual portraits of the beloved and muse of Pablo Picasso - Dora Maar. The work is made in the style of abstractionism and carries the artist's inner experience about the upcoming break with his beloved woman after 9 years of relationship.
The relationship of the two creative people were full of irrepressible passion and contradictions, and, apparently, therefore, Picasso depicted Dora in the form of solid angles and broken lines, and also very unattractive. And on the back of the chair on which Dora sits, we see a cute little black cat, or rather, her silhouette. By the way, the muse of the artist did not like cats, but Picasso portrayed the cat as a symbol of the stormy relationship between them.
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso himself did not favor thoroughbred cats, but he always treated the homeless and homeless with sincere sympathy. “I like feral cats that hunt birds, rush through the streets like crazy, drag everything that comes across,” recalled the artist’s colleague Brassai. Such Picasso painted in his feline series, which includes the paintings "The Cat Grabbing a Bird", "The Cat Eating a Bird", "The Cat and the Lobster".
"The Cat That Grabbed the Bird" (1938). Canvas, oil.
"A cat eating a bird"
"The Cat and the Lobster" (1965).
This is such a huge amount of money art lovers are willing to pay for paintings with cats. And looking into the history of painting, we can see that these cute creatures have captivated a huge number of masters, from antiquity to the present day.
The painting "My Wife's Lovers" was created by the artist Carl Kahler commissioned by the American millionaire Kate Birdsell Johnson in 1891-1893. It is believed that the name of the painting was invented by her husband Robert Johnson before his death, although the millionaire died two years before the artist began work on the painting.
Kate Birdsell Johnson was passionate about cats. In her California estate, under the supervision of servants, 350 Angora and Persian cats and cats lived at the same time (according to other sources, the number of animals did not exceed 50). She ordered a painting Austrian artist Kaler, who specialized in portraits, as well as in the depiction of nudes and equestrian competitions.
The artist's acquaintances called him a "born adventurer" and talented painter, who, nevertheless, asked for too high a price for his paintings and could destroy the work if the customer could not agree on a reasonable payment with him. Shortly before Kahler received the order, he came to the US from Australia, where he lived for several years.
Kahler had never painted cats before. After a wealthy American ordered a painting, he moved to her estate, where he lived for three years. According to him, there he studied, he studied cat habits and made sketches. For his work, Kaler received 5 thousand dollars and painted several paintings with the owner's cats.
Featuring 42 larger-scale cats, "My Wife's Lovers" is the largest painting of these animals, experts say. The size of the canvas is 180 × 260 cm, the total weight reaches 103 kilograms. In the center of the composition is one of Johnson's favorite cats, nicknamed Sultan, which the millionaire allegedly bought in Paris for 5 thousand dollars. However, the only recorded expensive cat in this era was a Los Angeles cat purchased for $3,000.
The artist completed the painting in March 1893; in December, her client died of pneumonia at the age of 61. In her will, Johnson reportedly set aside half a million dollars for the aftercare of her cats. Other sources claim that the cats received only $20,000. Since the American had no children, her property was sold at auction.
The painting "My Wife's Lovers" was acquired by the owner art gallery in San Francisco. The canvas was kept by him for 10 years, but in 1906 his salon was destroyed as a result of a large-scale earthquake. As a result of the cataclysm, the creator of the painting, Karl Kahler, also died. The canvas itself was not damaged.
Throughout the 20th century, the painting changed its owners several times. In November 2015, it was sold to a private buyer from Los Angeles at Sotheby's for $826,000. The collector wished to remain anonymous. “I acquired Carl Koehler's Lovers of My Wife because the memories of my mother are closely associated with this image,” the collector explained through his representative. “Years ago I bought a reprint of this painting for her and it hung in her room until she passed away in 1991.”
42 This is the number of cats depicted in Karl Kahler's painting "My Wife's Lovers". That's how he called his creation to anyone Unknown artist, concurrently the author of one hit. Two years ago, the painting was sold for 826 thousand dollars. It is not known for certain whether the artist painted any other paintings, but most likely not (besides the portrait of another cat).
The history with cats is really unusual. And 126 years after its creation, it is still full of bitter humor, sarcasm and irony. Jokes about overly independent women surrounded by cats will never lose their relevance.
In principle, the same idea was embedded in the very idea of creating a work. In the house of the customer, American billionaire Kate Johnson, 350 cats, birds and many other animals lived. Kate had no children, so she devoted her whole life to her beloved pets. In her mansion, Johnson even maintained a special staff of servants, whose duties included caring for animals.
According to legend, the painting got its name from light hand wife Kate. He, however, died before the start of work on it. The canvas, which measures almost two by three meters and weighs more than one hundred kilograms, is considered the world's greatest image of cats. In the center of the composition we see Sultan's cat - his owner bought it for three thousand dollars.
One hit writer
The Austrian Karl Kahler, who was unknown to anyone before the history of cats, painted mainly horses and racing scenes. Before starting work, he spent three years at Kate's estate observing the habits of caudates, making sketches and sketches. He received five thousand dollars for his work. Although it was rumored that the artist and the rich widow had a relationship of a slightly different nature ...
In 1903, after Kate's death, the painting with cats made a splash in one of the galleries in San Francisco. At the same time, a terrible earthquake hit the United States. The artist died, but the canvas managed to escape. Over the next hundred years, about eight thousand reproductions of the painting were sold. "My Wife's Lovers" changed owners several times and traveled the world with cat shows.
