What happens when a cat becomes the subject of da Vinci s Mona Lisa or takes the starring role in Hamlet or Lawrence of Arabia? Susan Herbert s feline interpretations of famous images from Western culture have charmed and amused readers for decades. Cats Galore brings together illustrations from the affectionately envisioned Pre-Raphaelite Cats, Shakespeare Cats, Movie Cats, and Opera Cats as well as other delightful images of cats cast in scenes from art, theater, and film into one delightful volume. Divided into three sections Cats in Art, Cats on Stage, and Cats in the Movies this is the ultimate compendium for cat-loving culture buffs and cultured pet owners alike. Works by Degas and van Gogh retain their distinctive styles in spite of the furry faces; cats shine in Much Ado About Nothing and The Barber of Seville; and a bushy-tailed James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause stares at the camera with the iconic cigarette in his mouth.

Susan Herberts feline versions of famous paintings have delighted cat and art-lovers everywhere. In this book, now available in paperback, she turns her eye to the works of the Pre-Raphaelite painters, whose popularity is reaching new heights today. The epitome of their style and period, these wonderful paintings can be viewed in a new and entrancing way when their protagonists are endearing cats. The Beggar Maid, more beautiful than day in Tennysons poem, takes on a particularly touching relationship with King Cophetua, while Medea gives new meaning to the word enchantress as she prepares the ingredients for a spell. And were ever two creatures so frightened and so abandoned as the poor cat princes wickedly imprisoned in the Tower, or two lovers so sad and so stoical as the young officer cat and his fiancee on the eve of the Battle of Waterloo? A special feature of this book is its inclusion of small black-and-white reproductions of all the original paintings that have inspired Susan Herbert. Once again she has risen to the challenge of endowing the worlds best-loved works of art with a certain feline charm.

Susan Herbert’s innovative, witty and hugely popular renderings of cats in human situations, from Shakespearean drama to masterpieces of Western art, have won her a large and admiring public. Now she draws on her lifelong fascination with cinema to give us a series of scenes from classic films – all with cats playing the leading roles. Here is an irresistible array of well-known characters, from the silent films of the 1920s through big-budget musicals and the lure of the Wild West to contemporary hit films. Here are flirting, dancing, detecting and menacing cats: a beguiling flower seller in Covent Garden, a seductive older woman and a young graduate, a hard-boiled private eye with a falcon.... Susan Herbert studied at the Ruskin School of Art. Having worked for the English National Opera and the Theatre Royal, she now specializes in limited edition prints of theatrical animals and exhibits frequently.

For this book of cats in costume, Susan Herbert turns from masterpieces of fine art to masterpieces of theater. Painting in her familiar and highly popular style, this imaginative artist presents an irresistible array of well-known characters in the great Shakespearean plays, from the tragic Romeo and Juliet to the mischievous Titania, from the beautiful Cleopatra to the roguish Falstaff. In thirty-two entrancing paintings, Susan Herbert opens up an unsuspected world of Shakespeare interpreted by cats with all their winning ways. Her many devoted admirers will find this collection full of the charm and humor of her earlier books; and newcomers to her art will be surprised and enchanted by the finesse she brings to this portrait gallery of cats in unusual guises.