September Fine Art And Antiques Catalogue Sale

      

Estimate £3000 - £5000                                                  Estimate £3000 - £5000

Louis William Wain, the English artist best known for his cat paintings, was born in Clerknwell, London in the year 1860.

Louis was born with a cleft lip and the family doctor decreed that he should not be sent to school or educated in anyway until the age of ten!  When finally allowed to school he had difficulties in settling to his schoolwork and would often be found, skipping class and wandering the streets of London.

His talent for art must have been spotted at some stage as later he studied at the West London School of Art and went on to teach at the establishment for a period of time. 

At the tender age of twenty, Wain became the breadwinner, after his father’s death and shortly afterwards left his teaching position to became a freelance artist.  He specialised in drawing animals including livestock from agricultural shows and also detailed illustrations of English country houses and estate for periodicals such as Illustrated London News and Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News.

In 1883 at the age of 23, Wain married his sisters’ governess, Emily Richardson, ten years his senior,   They moved to Hampstead but sadly Emily quickly developed cancer and died three years later.  Louis taught their pet cat Peter tricks to amuse Emily during her illness.  He would draw sketches of the large black and white cat and Peter can be recognised in many of the artist’s early works.

Wain’s first drawing of anthropomorphised cats, still depicted on all fours and without clothes, was published in the Christmas issue of the Illustrated London News in 1886.  As his work developed the cats began to walk upright, wearing clothes and human-like expressions, engaged in all manner of activities such as playing cards, smoking, serving tea etc.

Despite the huge popularity of his work Wain continued to struggle financially.  He proved to be inept in matters of business and was easily led into bad investments.  He continued to live with his mother and sisters and to provide for them.  After the turn of the century his popularity began to decline as did his mental stability.  His charming but quirky personality changed, he began to suffer from delusions with the onset of schizophrenia.  His behaviour became hostile, erratic and sometimes violent, particularly towards his sisters. Eventually they could no longer cope and in 1924 he was committed to the pauper ward of Springfield Mental Hospital.  When, a year later, his whereabouts was discovered there was a public outcry and appeals were made by leading figures to have Wain transferred to the Bethlem Royal Hospital and from there to the Napsbury Hospital in Hertfordshire.  Here he spent his final years, enjoying the gardens and the hospital cats which he continued to draw until his death in 1939.

Today his works are highly collectable and Morphets, the Harrogate Auctioneers are to offer a private collection of seven original monochrome gouache, pen and ink works depicting cats in a variety of sketches some of which are illustrated here.

Each work is expected to realise £3000-£5000 and will come under the hammer at the Harrogate saleroom on Albert Street on Thursday 6th September.  Further information on the Louis Wain collection is available from the auctioneers on 01423 530030.  Selected entries for this sale are invited now and until the deadline on 10th August.

Estimate £3000 - £5000