Xuan Loc Xuan, “Nasturtium Cat,” 2023. (Photo: Xuan Loc Xuan)
Some 4,000 years ago, cats waltzed into our lives for the first time. We continued to domesticate these beloved creatures across millennia, relying upon them as hunters, companions, and even as idols, as in ancient Egypt. Today, cats live on every continent except Antarctica, and about 49 million households in the U.S. boasted at least one feline friend in 2024. Now, a new book celebrates the cat’s enduring presence not just in our lives, but in visual art and culture.
Published by Phaidon in February 2026, Cat offers a whimsical overview of its eponymous animal, revealed across more than 200 images. These entries span everything from ancient mosaics and contemporary garments, to abstract sculptures and informative pamphlets from 19th century Thailand. Aside from its many tortoiseshells, tabbies, and lucky maneki-neko cats, the expansive volume also delves into iconic pop-culture characters and memes, including Puss in Boots, Dr. Seuss’s Cat in the Hat, the Cheshire Cat, and Nyan Cat. Renowned artists are represented throughout the volume as well, such as Judy Chicago, Nan Goldin, Kerry James Marshall, Henri Matisse, and Yoshitomo Nara, among others.
Taken in its entirety, Cat is undoubtedly a comprehensive collection, proving just how much we have cherished these pets, no matter the time or place. Considering its global and stylistic breadth, it should come as no surprise that the book surprises and delights, whether it be through Doja Cat’s cat-inspired Met Gala look from 2023, or a limestone tablet from c. 1295–1075 BCE in which an anthropomorphized cat waits upon feline royalty. Satoru Tsuda, for instance, offers a playful photograph of two cats dressed in Japanese school uniforms, while Bill Traylor contributes an illustrated cat with bold, almost startled eyes.
What distinguishes the book the most, though, are its thoughtful juxtapositions, pairing unexpected images together to prompt deeper reflection. One page showcases a resin sculpture by Lee Sangsoo, depicting a Siamese cat evoked through carefully-painted, intertwined forms. The work faces an anonymous page from a 19th-century treatise on cats, featuring a Siamese and a grayish-black cat perched on wooden tables. By putting these two pieces in conversation, we are invited to trace the evolution of visual representation from illustrative realism to sculptural abstraction.
Another spread presents a meticulous engraving from 1657, in which a tabby delicately closes its eyes. The black-and-white composition complements a 2014 photograph by Martin Parr, showing a real-life Garfield sniffing a cake placed on a table. Just like his 1657 counterpart, this orange cat seems equally at ease, his eyes barely open as if relishing the cake’s sugary scent. It’s a humorous combination, illustrating how cats are both symbols of serenity and mischief.
“This volume proves that cats have infinitely inspired artists, authors, animal rescuers, musicians, photographers, fashion designers, film-makers, and seemingly anyone who has ever had the pleasure of savoring the present moment alongside this animal,” Leïla Jarbouai writes in the book’s introduction. “The pages that follow demonstrate how human beings have taken our lead from cats’ own innate philosophy: be ourselves, whatever happens; remain true to our own being; and stay free without servility.”
Cat is currently available for purchase via Bookshop.org and Phaidon’s website.
Cat lovers, rejoice! Phaidon released the purr-fect book with over 200 images depicting cherished feline friends across time and space.
Jodie Niss, “Untitled (#2),” 2022. (Photo: Jodie Niss)
Sally J. Han, “Nap,” 2022. (Photo: Jason Mandella)
Lee Sangsoo, “Sitting Cat (Siamese),” 2024. (Photo: Lee Sangsoo)
Adolph E. Weidhaas, “Brünnhilde,” 1936. (Photo: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)
In Cat, we have the chance to explore artistic and cultural representations of cats through sculptures, advertisements, mosaics, limestone tablets, paintings, and more.
Utagawa Hiroshige II, “A White Cat Playing with a String,” 1863. (Photo: The Minneapolis Institute of Art)
Bill Traylor, “Untitled (Midnight Blue Cat),” c. 1939–42. (Photo: Bill Traylor Family Inc., Ricco/Maresca Gallery)
Nathaniel Currier, “The Favorite Cat,” 1838–48. (Photo: The Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Théophile Alexandre Steinlen, “Tournée du Chat Noir de Rodolphe Salis,” 1896. (Photo: Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers University)
“Cat” by Phaidon’s editors, with a foreword by Hannah Shaw and introduction by Leïla Jarbouai (Phaidon, $46.55 via Bookshop)
My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Phaidon.
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