Louis Wain: The Cat Man - 85 Reproductions

Louis Wain was born on August 5, 1860 in London. He was the first of six children, and the only male child. At the request of a doctor, he was withheld from school until he was ten yrs old due to a cleft lip. Wain first studied art at the West London School of Art and eventually taught at the school. After a short period of teaching, he quit his position to become a freelance artist, where he achieved great success. Wain illustrated for several journals including the Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News and the Illustrated London News. He preferred drawing animals and country scenes, and at one point hoped to make a living by drawing dog portraits.
At the age of 23, Wain married a woman, Emily Richardson, who was ten years his senior, and moved with her to Hampstead in north London. Early in their marriage she developed cancer and died three years later. During her illness, their pet cat Peter comforted Emily. It was at this time Louis discovered the subject that would define his career. He would dress up Peter and teach him tricks to amuse his wife. He began to draw detailed sketches of the black and white cat. In 1886, Wain drew his first anthropomorphized cat illustration titled, A Kitten’s Christmas Party, it depicted 150 cats, many resembling Peter. His following work would have cats walking uprightly with exaggerated expressions, wear period clothing and parody human behavior. For the next thirty years he was quite prolific, often producing several hundred drawings a year.
Later in life, Wain suffered from schizophrenia that began around 1907. His behavior became increasingly suspicious and hostile, especially toward his sisters. They eventually committed him to the pauper ward of Springfield Mental Hospital in 1924. His circumstances became widely publicized, and appeals made by H.G. Wells and the Prime Minister. As a result, he was transferred to the Bethlem Royal Hospital in Southwark and again in 1930 to Napsbury Hospital near St Albans in Hertfordshire. While hospitalized, he continued to illustrate the remaining years of his life in relative peace. He died on July 4, 1939.