The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

The Monkey and the Cat

The Monkey and the Cat

probably 1670s
(Dutch, c. 1625–1695)
Framed: 80 x 93.5 x 6 cm (31 1/2 x 36 13/16 x 2 3/8 in.); Unframed: 62.2 x 73.7 cm (24 1/2 x 29 in.)
Location: not on view

Description

This picture interprets one of Aesop’s ancient Greek fables (or probably the more contemporary interpretation by Jean de la Fontaine, even more famous at the time), which warns of the dangers of flattery. A monkey sweet-talks a cat into pulling scalding chestnuts out of the fire. The cat finishes the risky and painful task to discover that the monkey has already gobbled up nearly all of them.
  • The vibrant composition is created through a variety of painting techniques. Some of the preparatory layers were left in reserve and remain visible, notably around the ears of the cat. Thicker paint applications, including the flicks of red and yellow, invoke embers scattered throughout the painting. The artist used finely-pointed brushes for many delicate lines that make up the hairs of the animals and wider brushes for the swirling strokes in the background.

    The painting is currently undergoing conservation treatment to reduce discolored varnish coatings and to compensate for abrasions linked to previous interventions, which for years had inhibited the full appreciation of the artist’s nuanced brush handling. Old but nonoriginal restoration paint, now safely removed, has revealed many original details that were previously hidden.

    In the x-radiograph, an old repaired tear is visible in the mouth of the cat; the lead white adhesive used for the repair is radio-opaque and appears white in the photograph. Additional scientific analysis suggests the use of earth pigments, vermilion, and lead white.
  • 1979-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
    1974-1979
    The Butkin Foundation, Cleveland, OH, by gift to the Cleveland Museum of Art 1
    c. 1968-1974
    Noah Butkin [1918-1980], Cleveland, OH, probably by exchange to The Butkin Foundation
    Until c. 1968
    (Judson Art Galleries, Kenilworth, IL, sold to Noah Butkin)
    Probably until the mid-1960s
    (Central Picture Galleries, New York, sold to Judson Art Galleries)1
  • Norman A. Sugarman, letter to Sherman Lee, Aug. 29, 1979, in CMA curatorial file.
    Harry Judson Moore, phone conversation with Victoria Sears Goldman, Jan. 13, 2014.
    Harry Judson Moore, phone conversation with Victoria Sears Goldman, Jan. 13, 2014.
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Catalogue of Paintings, Part 3: European Paintings of the 16th, 17th, and 18th Centuries. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1982. Reproduced: p. 242; Mentioned: p. 243
    Lee, Sherman E. "The Year in Review for 1979." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 67, no. 3 (1980): 58-99. Reproduced: cat. no. 34, p. 66; Mentioned: p. 60 www.jstor.org
    Kathman, Barbara A. A Cleveland Bestiary. Cleveland, OH; Cleveland Museum of Art, 1981. Reproduced: p. 27; Mentioned: p. 21, p. 61
  • A Cleveland Bestiary. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 15-December 16, 1981).
    A Cleveland Bestiary, The Cleveland Museum of Art, October 14 - December 9, 1981: cat. fig. 2l and p. 29.
    Year in Review: 1979. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (February 13-March 9, 1980).
    The Year in Review for 1979, The Cleveland Museum of Art, February 13 - March 9, 1980:, cat.no. 34, repr. (Bulletin, March 1980).
  • {{cite web|title=The Monkey and the Cat|url=false|author=Abraham Hondius|year=probably 1670s|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1979.82