Artwork
Study of a seated cat
Study of a seated cat is a drawing by the Romanticist artist Daniel Maclise. It dates from 1825 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
This pencil drawing by Daniel Maclise portrays a cat seated on its haunches, its body turned away while the head is angled back to glance over the shoulder. The animal’s dark coat is interspersed with lighter patches, rendered through a dense network of intersecting lines that suggest fur texture and form.
Technique & Style
Maclise employs a varied pencil hatching, concentrating strokes where shadow falls and spacing them where light emerges. The cross‑hatching creates a sense of volume, while the directional lines follow the contours of the cat’s musculature, giving the sketch a lively, three‑dimensional quality despite its monochrome medium.
Subject & Meaning
The study focuses solely on the feline figure, capturing a moment of alert curiosity. By positioning the cat’s gaze away from the viewer, Maclise hints at an unseen stimulus, inviting contemplation of the animal’s instinctual awareness.
History & Provenance
The work belongs to a larger assemblage of 390 sketches and drawings compiled by Maclise, displayed in a pillar stand of thirty frames. The series includes landscapes, figure studies, and portraits of literary and political personalities such as Edward Bulwer‑Lytton and Benjamin Disraeli, alongside pieces by contemporaries like T.S. Cooper and Sir Edwin Landseer.
Context
Created during the mid‑19th century, the drawing reflects the Romantic era’s interest in natural observation and the expressive potential of line. Animal studies were a common component of academic training, serving both as exercises in anatomy and as studies of character.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Daniel Maclise (25 January 1806 – 25 April 1870) was an Irish history painter, literary and portrait painter, and illustrator, who worked for most of his life in London, England.
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