Indian and Himalayan Art Souvenir Painting of a Cat Holding a Prawn in Its Mouth Made in Calcutta (present-day Kolkata), West Bengal, India, Asiac. 1900 Artist/maker unknown, India Opaque and transparent watercolors on paper Currently not on view 1994-148-556 Stella Kramrisch Collection, 1994 |
LabelProfessional artists working at Kalighat drew inspiration from and offered critiques of contemporary life and events in Calcutta. Although cats are unpopular as pets in India, the image of a cat-usually an orange, spotted one-eating some other animal was a frequent motif in Kalighat painting. It is said to represent a favorite object of ridicule: the hypocritical monk or religious ascetic who, although he has supposedly renounced the world, continues to indulge in pleasures of the flesh. |
