Louis Wain was famous in the early part of last century as an illustrator, particularly of cats, but suffered from schizophrenia for many years. He spent his last few years in a mental hospital near St. Albans, still creating his cats.
The earlier drawings are full of humour and some resemble a feline version of those Bateman cartoons of social faux pas. ‘Cats Playing Cricket’ is particularly detailed and brilliantly observed.
Some of the later pieces, particularly the large paintings, appear more disturbed, especially in the facial expressions of the cats. My daughter, aged eleven, said one of them reminded her of The Grinch. They are however still remarkable in their execution and have a larger than life, cartoon quality.
The exhibition also gives an idea of the breadth of Wain’s work in The Illustrated London News around the last twenty years of the nineteenth century. These not only included cats but also dogs, horses and architectural drawings with the finest, most exquisite details.
There is a table in the middle of the gallery with related games and puzzles for children. This is an increasingly popular way of introducing art to children in exhibitions and when I visited it was being well used. One of the games uses a reproduction of ‘The Christmas Party’.
