Susie Hodge - Artists and Their Pets: True Stories of Famous Artists and Their Animal Friends

duopress

Contents

, span i sh maestro

, from me x i co w i th pass i on

, amer i can i llustrator

, golden man of art nouveau

, creat i ve w i t

, french art i st & model

, ch i nese ph i losopher & art i st

, powerful v i sual vo i ce

, see i ng the world through an i mals eyes

, amer i can modern i st

, k i ng of pop art

, span i sh surreal i st

, french w i ld Beast

, from russ i a w i th color

, bold br i t

, jack the dr i pper

, belg i an surreal i st

, the greatest maestro

, an i mal lover

, cat-obsessed art i st

I ntroduct i on

For centuries, artists all around the world have enjoyed the company of pets, allowing animals calming influence and companionship to help them concentrate on their work. You might be surprised at how many artists do not always care for the company of other humans, but many are real animal lovers. Some, such as Pablo Picasso , Frida Kahlo , Norman Rockwell , Andy Warhol , and David Hockney , have used their artistic talents to capture their pets individual personalities and characteristics. Others, such as Wassily Kandinsky and Ren Magritte , painted many unexpected things, but not their beloved pets. Suzanne Valadon and Ai Weiwei simply delighted when cats and other animals wandered into their homes. In all cases, these animals were treated with great respect.

Because so many artists have not led what most people consider to be normal lives, many have welcomed animals as their companions, as animals do not judge or criticize but offer unconditional, unquestioning love.

Here are just some examples of the great artists and their awesome pets you will find in this book: The Spanish artist Pablo Picasso was a great animal lover. Over his 91 years, he shared his home with umpteen different pets, including owls, dogs, a mouse, and a goat. The Mexican painter Frida Kahlo had a difficult time with her health and her husband, but her dogs, birds, monkeys, and fawn (called Granizo) loved her without judgment. Several other artists, such as Andy Warhol and Gustav Klimt, had a number of petsusually independent catsthat wandered freely around their homes and studios, crumpling drawings and paintings to make themselves comfy beds. The American painter Jackson Pollock was often depressed, but as he made huge drip paintings, his dogs kept him company and made him feel happier.

Another American artist, Georgia OKeeffe, liked peace and quiet as she worked, but she also liked the peace to be filled with the gentle purrs of her Siamese cats or the soft snores of her chow dogs. Romare Bearden, who was a social worker as well as an artist, was a great big manwith a great big heart, for people and his cats.

Yet while most of the artists in this book truly loved animals, Salvador Dal preferred pets that drew attention to him. His animals became an extension of his extraordinary art. He was once photographed taking an anteater for a walk.

Dal had two pet ocelots (or dwarf leopards) that he took with him to expensive hotels, art galleries, and restaurants. People worried about the ocelots because they could be dangerous, so he once told a woman in a restaurant that his ocelot was really a house cat that he had painted to look like an exotic jungle cat. As Dal was so extravagant, the woman believed him.

Now read on to find out more about great artists and their awesome pets!

Pablo Picasso

Span i sh Maestro

P robably the most influential artist of the 20th century, the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso had a career that lasted for more than 75 years and enough pets to run his own zoo!

One of the most prolific artists in the history of modern art, Pablo Picasso became a big name in art in the 20th century. He also had a big name: Pablo Diego Jos Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Mara de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santsima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruz y Picasso.

Picasso worked as a painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, and he produced thousands of works. Early in his career, however, he was so poor that he burned his drawings to keep warm.