amsterdam blep

www.rijksmuseum.nl (PD)
http://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.111262

Longtime Museum friends know that I often wish books still included decorations like this: at the end or beginning of a chapter, perhaps, or at the bottom of the page because why not.  This particular one was etched sometime in the mid-1700's by Simon Fokke (Dutch, 1712-84), who made his living on tiny portraits and book vignettes.  Whomever commissioned this tiny treasure must have had a sense of humor, because when you look closely....

Blep!

Or whatever you personally call a happy stuck-out dog tongue.

a cat guards a sketchbook

courtesy of Wellcome Collection, CC_BY

1859:  Emily M. Madden opens her sketchbook, which she will fill with drawings of the cat Mouton, his (?) friends and his adventures.  And since it's his book, Emily thought he'd want to make sure everyone knew.  "This is my book.  Miau-u-u!" This is all I know about Mouton and Emily, but I could not pass either of them by this morning.

coziest tea

https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/263603; commissioned 1997
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Who is Marjorie Fox?  The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa commissioned this supremely adorable woolen tea cozy from her in 1997.  I wanted to see if she had created more fiber artwork, but not a fiber more can I find.  At least this one exists for our admiration:  a sheep bearing a washing-line full of clothing.  Ah, yes, you say to yourself as you pour a hot cuppa, a fleecy fellow creature makes the wool that keeps me and my tea warm.  Remember to say thank you.

wonder cat kyuu-chan

I'm going to send you elsewhere in a second, but with good reason:  I don't want you to miss Japanese comic artist Nitori Sasami's 30-part webseries.  Titled "Wonder Cat Kyuu-chan," the comic takes you from a chilly kitty outside in a box to a new home, shopping, and the ways that every day can be special.  I hope it cheers you as much as it did me.
Let's go see Kyuu-chan!

vintage wordless wednesday redux

from the museum's collection, and a personal favorite!

rita on a rainy afternoon

image copyright and by kindest courtesy of the artist

That's the title of this charming piece by L.A. artist Stephanie Birdsong.  Rita's looking out the window at a friend across the way - see him?  He's above the bookstore.  It's a completely plausible situation, presented as the coziest escape.  I wish I were sitting at the table with her.
"Rita on a Rainy Afternoon" and many other bright jolly scenes are available at Birdsong's Etsy shop.
Just for instance, here's a few I also loved -
Snowflakes
Radio
The elegant Sneaky Panther
Go and find some fun!

vintage wordless wednesday redux

i can't even remember how long I've owned this!

wordless vintage wednesday redux

formerly in my collection, gave away as a gift!

otter admiration, egypt

Gift of Lily S. Place, 1923 www.metmuseum.org

Look at this otter!  Isn't he the greatest? It is just as well, Museum friends, that you are not in my office right now listening to my high-pitched squeals of delight.  According to the record page at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, this fellow (made of cupreous metal, that is, copper or mostly-copper alloy) dates from Late Period or Ptolemaic Egypt, 664-30 B.C.  It seems that what the Egyptians knew, and we have forgotten, is that when otters do this adorable paws-up move that they are actually adoring the sun.  Is that a sun disk on his head?  Yes, along with the cobra symbolizing Wadjet, the goddess of Lower Egypt.  Otters were part of Wadjet's identification as one of the goddesses called "Eye of Ra" (or eye of the sun).  Here's another otter in worship from the Kunsthistorisches in Vienna.

a cat becomes queen

thanks hathitrust (PD)

This morning I'm giving you a spoiler:  this is the last page of a funny little book from 1899 titled Dunigan's Tortoiseshell Cat: or, the Life of Queen Tab and her Kitten.  Only a few pages long, the verse narrative follows a scrappy mama cat as she finds a job with the local miller, slays vermin, sees her child become a beloved playmate of the miller's son, and generally wins every which way.  Want to have a few minutes of feel-good pep talk from a surprising source?  Have a look, why don't you? (Quick note: the link given by HathiTrust jumps right into the book's middle - page back for full effect.)

a friend met traveling

photos mine

We visited Friday Harbor this past weekend (and can't wait to go back).  One of our great pleasures was meeting the Port of Friday Harbor's official seal:  Popeye, a girl with all beholders under her flipper.  She loves attention and fish, and gets plenty of both.  I took a lovely short video of us feeding her, but it won't load, alas.  Luckily many others have done the same.

feline fine with tessa worley...and a Pet Museum announcement!

image copyright and by kindest permission of the artist

Eugene artist Tessa Worley has a light, clean-lined, joyful style.  I find it a perfect mix of modern approach and timeless sweetness, as you see above in her print "Feline Fine."  (Have a look at this Gainsborough series of cat studies for the timeless part! See what I mean?  Are you feline fine too?  Then you can pick up this happy print at Worley's Etsy shop, Fox and Bear Paper Co.)

That is why she was my final artist of choice for the newest Pet Museum project - pet votives based on the 7-day saints' candles.  Though you could light these in memory of a beloved dog or cat, they also serve perfectly for a new-puppy gift, or simply because your pet makes you happy.  Shine a little light!  Here's Worley's perfect work, two watercolors that I commissioned from her specially:

copyright 2017 the pet museum 

copyright the pet museum

The back label is also a work of art.  I'll post that tomorrow or Sunday.

I asked Tessa Worley about her work, and here's her statement:

Watercolor and illustration are a type of creative therapy for me. More specifically, illustrating animals brings so much joy to my everyday life. I feel lucky to do what I do and get so much fulfillment out of the various projects I have my hands in. This project with The Pet Museum meant a lot to me because I, like so many others, have experienced pet loss and the lasting devastation that comes with that. These votives are a thoughtful way to remember our old friends and a reminder to stay in the present moment with the animals that are still with us.

These watercolors, immediate, simple, heartfelt, were exactly what I wanted.  My great thanks to Tessa Worley!  Stay tuned, all.

wordless vintage wednesday

thanks ampersand. i own this.

you've heard about the cavy cop?

thanks british library (PD)

You're cruising through the Wellington area of New Zealand.  School's in session, so watch your speed:  if you go too fast you'll have to answer to Constable Elliot.  If you get caught, remember it's all right if you don't look him in the eyes, since that would require you getting down flat on the ground.  You see, officer Elliot is a guinea pig.
Mind you, this isn't a completely brand new concept.  Over at Cambridge's Ethology Institute you can sign up for scent-detection animal handler training at Guinea Pig Camp.

vintage wordless wednesday

thanks ampersand

vintage wordless wednesday

thanks ampersand

a cheerful "story of a lost dog," 1933

thanks fr.wikisource.org (PD)

This colorful cover, and the cheerful tale within, is by the pioneering cartoonist and animator Benjamin Rabier.  You see his work very, very frequently, though you don't realize it:  he's the best-known illustrator of the Laughing Cow logo.

vintage wordless wednesday repeat

from my collection. i have to find more!

2 young ones

www.metmuseum.org. Rogers Fund, 1913

Puppies and babies: best buddies since time immemorial, or at least in this case since sometime in the 1st century BC to the 2nd century AD.  The Met has this little bronze as "Greek or Roman," and it's true that during that stretch of time the two cultures were interleaving to a deep extent.  The realism and warmth you see here is as fresh as anything you might create today.  In fact, I'm surprised at how pudgy and winsome the unknown artist managed to make that puppy, since "cute" is not the first adjective generally springing to mind when one thinks about the Greco-Romans.

vintage wordless wednesday

thx ampersand. 1961