SCHIZOPHRENIC VICTORIAN PAINTER OF CATS -Louis Wain

“Louis Wain (1860-1939) was an English artist best known for his drawings, which consistently featured anthropomorphised large-eyed cats and kittens. In his later years he suffered from schizophrenia, which, according to some psychologists, can be seen in his works.H.G. Wells said of him, “He has made the cat his own. He invented a cat style, a cat society, a whole cat world. English cats that do not look and live like Louis Wain cats are ashamed of themselves.”


“He had always been considered quite charming but odd, and often had difficulty in distinguishing between fact and fantasy. Others frequently found him incomprehensible, and his mode of speaking tangential. His behavior and personality changed, and he began to suffer from delusions, with the onset of schizophrenia. Whereas he had been a mild-mannered and trusting man, he became hostile and suspicious, particularly towards his sisters. He claimed that the flickering of the cinema screen had robbed the electricity from their brains. He began wandering the streets at night, rearranging furniture within the house, and spent long periods locked in his room writing incoherently.”



“When his sisters could no longer cope with his erratic and occasionally violent behavior, he was finally committed in 1924 to a pauper ward of Springfield Mental Hospital. A year later, he was discovered there, and his circumstances were widely publicized, leading to appeals from such figures as H.G. Wells and the personal intervention of the Prime Minister. Wain was transferred to the Bethlem Royal Hospital, and again in 1930 to Napsbury Hospital near St Albans in Hertfordshire, north of London. This hospital was relatively pleasant, with a garden and colony of cats, and he spent his final 15 years here in peace. While he became increasingly deluded, his erratic mood swings subsided, and he continued drawing for pleasure. His work from this period is marked by bright colors, flowers, and intricate and abstract patterns, though his primary subject remained the same.”

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RESCUE A BEAR THIS HOLIDAY SEASON

Do you really need to buy your friend another ill-fitting sweater? A gift card they'll forget to use?

http://www.reallywildgifts.ca/index.php

How about donating some money to the WSPA?
Help rescue a bear, chimp, dog and various other forms of fauna this holiday season.....

'Bears are one of the world’s best loved animals, but they are also subjected to many different forms of cruelty. Five of the eight species of bears are already endangered and all are under threat. Bears are killed for sport, imprisoned in zoos, and taught degrading tricks for circuses. They are killed for their fur, meat, gall bladders and paws. Tens of thousands are farmed for their bile and used in cruel spectacles and sports such as bear baiting and bear dancing. Wish your friends, family and business clients a happy holiday and save-a-bear on their behalf.'

TIME FOR SOME AWWWWWWWWWW!

This is just so AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!

Overload yourself on cutesty pootsy goodness.

http://www.cuteoverload.com/

A LIST OF THINGS I HAVE PET - THAT I REALLY SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN PETTING

A park squirrel while he was eating a piece of my muffin
An assertive chipmunk - I LET HIM sit on my shoulder
A baby raccoon wandering in my backyard - his mother close-by
A baby bird
Numerous growling dogs
Scads of mangy cats
A wild baby groundhog