Cat with a White Front

1910/1915

Gwen John

Associated Names
Gwen John

Artist, British, 1876 - 1939

This is a painting of a seated cat facing the right. Its fur is depicted in reddish-brown tones, with white areas around the neck and chest. Its eyes are closed, and its front legs are straight, with its paws placed together. The lines outlining the cat are loose and fluid, capturing the cat's form with minimal detail. The background is yellow paper.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    gouache, watercolor, and graphite on tan laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Mimi and Sanford Feld

  • Dimensions

    sheet: 21.9 × 17.4 cm (8 5/8 × 6 7/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2005.143.6

More About this Artwork

In this black and white photograph, a woman wearing a black dress leans toward an arched mirror set into a wall, so we see the woman twice in this double portrait. We are situated slightly below her so we look up at the woman, who gazes down and to our right. The surface of the wall is smooth but lightly textured, like adobe. Trees reflected in the mirror indicate that this is outdoors. The woman in front of us takes up the left half of the composition. She faces our right in profile and leans to our right, at the far edge of the mirror. Her dark hair is pulled up in ribbon entwined braids. She wears long, chandelier style earrings and her high-necked black dress has puffed, lace sleeves. We see her face straight on in the mirror’s reflection. The woman’s distinctive brows knit together over her rounded nose.

Article:  15 LGBTQ+ Artists to Know

Discover the lives of 15 LGBTQ+ artists and their art, much of which you can see at the National Gallery.

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Estate of the artist (number E. J. 879). (Davis & Langdale Company, Inc., New York); Mr. and Mrs. Sanford Feld, Far Hills, NJ; partial gift to NGA, 2005.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1981

  • Gwen John, Davis and Langdale Company, Inc., New York, 1981, no. 5.

Inscriptions

"EJ879" verso, lower left.

Wikidata ID

Q64572823

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