The Cat Art Show: 'It's no f*cking joke'

Hundreds of self-proclaimed cat people gathered in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday night for the opening of Cat Art Show, a gallery of multimedia pieces that share one theme: love of cats.

Shannon Leigh, whose bright blue dress was printed with cats wearing smaller, brighter dresses, didn't expect an actual gallery of fine art when she first attended three years ago.

"I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of art here," Leigh said. "Like, this is a legit art show that just happens to be about cats."

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The fact that people pass off the show as some kind of niche event for "hoarder spinsters" strikes a nerve for Susan Michals, Cat Art Show's founder and curator.

"They think it's a joke," she bristled. "And that's something I've been up against for a long time, but it's no fucking joke."

'It's no fucking joke.'

And the show feels like a real art show because it isa real art show. Over 140 pieces were on display in the gallery. A bar served frosé and IPAs, and patrons dressed in sleek (although cat-themed) outfits posed for photos at a professionally lit booth. The show's 11-day run includes a variety of cat-themed events, from a lecture on "famous feline history" to a cat-themed burlesque performance by Vanessa Burgundy. (Who, by the way, said her choreography required thinking "out of the litter box.")

"I saw there was a misrepresentation, perhaps, of what it meant to be a cat lady," Michals said. She wanted to curate a collection that would marry pop culture's love of cats with the art world's emerging creators.

"Apollo and Garfield" by Tiffany Sage Credit: cat art show

The former journalist and current feline enthusiast started the show in 2014. Some of the pieces she curated for this year's show are political -- like Rose Freymuth-Frazier's "Divine Intervention," which features a fluffy white cat pinning down a plush Trump with its paw. Others, as Michals describes it, "are simply an interpretation of our beloved."

And most of the opening night's attendees really, really love cats. According to Amy Douan, who wore a pink cat-printed dress for the occasion, "everyone should have at least two cats."

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Douan is the proud owner of four, and would get more if her apartment could fit them.

The artists share a similar love for our feline friends. Casey Weldon didn't participate in last year's Cat Art Show because he had already launched a solo show in New York where all of his pieces were cat themed. He called cats the "ultimate symbol of ironic humor."

"It's a lot of fun to make creepy stuff and put a cat on it," he said. His collection was inspired by vintage Valentine's Day cards, but instead of sappy messages, the cat-themed Valentines have angsty lyrics from '80s rock songs.

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Weldon isn't the only artist whose work revolves around cats -- Scarlett River, whose painting of a cat dressed as a sad clown was inspired by her own cat named Chicken Lady, said she had a "heavily influenced cat portfolio." She added that cats are "the most fascinating, wonderful creatures" and laments that the public "has them all wrong." River also insisted that they experience human emotions like jealousy more than other animals do.

Dr. Paul Koudounaris, a historian and photographer, said cats can "serve as a muse in a way that other animals can't."

Describing cats as "enigmatic" and "sensual," Koudounaris pointed out that for 19th century poets, the pets were considered "necessary equipment for an artistic personality."

Michals agreed, pointing out how innately aesthetic the feline form is: "There's a certain beauty in the way they jump or curl up."

Koudounaris' portrait for Cat Art Show -- aptly titled "Mewcifer" -- is part of a collection of photographs featuring his cat dressed in different costumes. He's also writing a book from the perspective of his cat -- for him, it's more than just a photo series, it's "an experiment in interspecies communication."

"Mewcifer" by Dr. Paul Koudounaris Credit: cat art show

"The bond between us was such that somehow it became a game where she realized she could please me," Koudounaris said when asked how he got his cat to wear a costume and pose for photos. "Just by my body movement or my posture, she knows what's working and what's not working."

The art show -- and CatCon, a cat-themed convention that Michals also founded seeks to cultivate a community for cat lovers that they wouldn't normally get in real life. Since cats are such solitary creatures, most cat owners bond online through social media. At events like this, she said, "you've come together for your love of animals."

For Melissa Aaron, a cat enthusiast and professor, it's just fun to meet other cat people.

"If you have a dog, you can take them to the dog park," she said. "If you're a cat person, welp!"

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