My top 10 Cat Pictures, Poems and Prose
I’ve written before about cat proverbs — and even created a few of my own — but cats are not just a source of wisdom, they’ve inspired countless artists and authors throughout history.
As a pet portrait artist, I spend much of my time drawing beautiful images of cats, but there are also many poems, stories, and paintings that feature them. So, I thought it would be fun to gather a few feline-themed creations together — poems, pictures, and prose — into one post.
1. Eleanor Farjeon – Cats Sleep Anywhere
Cats sleep anywhere,
Any table, any chair…
Farjeon’s poem celebrates the enviable adaptability of feline napping. Cats really can curl up in the most unexpected spots. My cat Titus has a number of favourite spots that he rotates through during the day.
2. Emily Dickinson – She Sights a Bird
She sights a Bird—she chuckles—
She flattens—then she crawls—
She runs without the look of feet—
Her eyes increase to Balls— …
This short poem captures, in just a few lines, the ballet-like grace of a hunting cat. Titus can often be seen sneaking up in exactly this way — then pouncing on his unsuspecting prey.
3. John Keats – To Mrs Reynolds’s Cat
Cat! who hast passed thy grand climacteric,
How many mice and rats hast in thy days
Destroyed? How many tit-bits stolen? Gaze
With those bright languid segments green, and prick
Those velvet ears – but prithee do not stick
Thy latent talons in me…
Keats’ affectionate poem is about a cat entering its senior years. Titus is slowing down a little — but he hasn’t quite reached his “grand climacteric” just yet! Lots more mice to catch and tit-bits to steal!
4. Théophile Steinlen – Le Chat Noir
One of my relatives has a print of this painting hanging in their home. Apparently, Le Chat Noir was the first modern cabaret and the artist Théophile Steinlen drew this in 1896 to advertise a tour of its entertainers.
I like it because it reminds me of a black cat we once had called Pepper, who used to sit proudly on a bright red chair that she had claimed entirely for herself.
5. Paul Klee – Cat and Bird
This slightly surreal piece shows a ginger cat intensely focused on a bird, its mind alive with anticipation. Even the cat’s heart-shaped nose seems to glow pink at the thought of its prey. Sometimes when Titus is sleeping his paws and whiskers twitch, and I’m certain he is dreaming of catching birds.
6. Henriëtte Ronner-Knip – The Cat at Play
Ronner-Knip’s 19th-century painting of a kitten is filled with life and charm. I recognise those paws and that expression so well — kittens excel at play, an essential part of growing up:
Kittens chase what can’t be caught,
pounce on shadows, climb soft mountains.
Each tumble practice, every bound hope—
danger pretend, but victory felt.
When life hits hard, we return to play,
remembering how we learnt to leap.
7. Beatrix Potter – The Tale of Tom Kitten
In this 1907 classic, three kittens — Tom, Mittens, and Moppet — are dressed in their finest clothes for a tea party, only to lose them while romping in the garden. It’s a humorous reminder that you can’t keep young cats (or children) clean for long.
8. Rudyard Kipling – The Cat That Walked By Himself
Kipling’s fable is all about feline independence. Unlike the cow and the dog, the cat in the story keeps his freedom while enjoying the benefits of human company.
‘I am not a friend, and I am not a servant. I am the Cat who walks by himself, and I wish to come into your cave.’
He wants the cave, and the cream, and to curl up by the fire, but on its own terms. There is a funny bit where he ‘pretends to be sorry’ but you can read the full story here.
9. Lewis Carroll – The Cheshire Cat
The Cheshire Cat, from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, appears with a riddle and disappears with a grin. So, to make up the number to 10, and keeping with the cat “P” theme — I’ll end the pictures, poems and prose with a famous puzzle.
10. How many going to St Ives?
While on my way to St. Ives,
I saw a man with 7 wives.
Each wife had 7 sacks,
Each sack had 7 cats,
Each cat had 7 kittens
Kitten, cats, sacks, wives,
How many were going to St. Ives?
I’ve chosen this well known riddle, not just because it has so many cats and kittens in it (there are 343 cats and 2401 kittens!), but also because my great grandfather, who was an artist, lived in Cornwall near St Ives.
So how many are going to St Ives? The answer is one, of course, because it was only ‘I’ who was going to St. Ives. Unless the man and his entourage were going there too — in which case the number could be much higher!
Commissioning an artwork of your cat
Cats have inspired poetry, art, riddles, and countless tales — and I love that my own work as a pet portrait artist lets me contribute to this long tradition of cat creativity. The picture above is one I completed recently. I really loved drawing it’s beautiful blue eyes! If you’d like me to draw amazingly detailed portrait of your own endearing, enigmatic and enchanting feline friend, then do please get in touch!