More on Henry, The Feline Fiber Artist
I recently featured a charming YouTube about Henry, The Feline Fiber Artist. Now, thanks to more information provided by Anita, Henry's Human, I can give you the scoop! This is from the Bangor Public Library flyer advertising Henry's show of his fiber arts. --Fiber Art Wall Hangings by HENRY--
~~Henry, Anita Louise McCormick's cat, is a fiber artist too! He specializes in creating unique fiber art wall hangings. Anita adopted Henry from the Airport Mall pet store in 2002 so her other kitty, Alice, would have another cat to play with.
Henry's talent as a fiber artist was discovered when his frustration with traditional scratching posts led Anita to purchase rug remnant pieces from Marden's, and nail them to the wall. It did not take him long to discover that not only did he now have a great place to sharpen his claws, but it proved to be a wonderful outlet for his artistic abilities!
When a new piece of rug is attached to the wall, Henry takes time to look it over to see how he can best use it to express his ideas and feelings. Then he begins his work, pulling a loop out here and a thread out there, until the piece is finished.
Most of Henry's fiber art wall hangings take months to complete. As soon as he is finished, he lets Anita know so she can remove it from the wall and replace it with a fresh piece of carpet.
While Anita has displayed Henry's wall hangings in her apartment for some time, this is the first public exhibit of his work.~~
If you doubt that Henry IS a true cat artist, here are close-ups of Henry's fabric art from his public exhibition:
Update- Anita left a note in the comments that Henry has become so popular that he now has a store at Cafe Press.
~~Henry, Anita Louise McCormick's cat, is a fiber artist too! He specializes in creating unique fiber art wall hangings. Anita adopted Henry from the Airport Mall pet store in 2002 so her other kitty, Alice, would have another cat to play with.
Henry's talent as a fiber artist was discovered when his frustration with traditional scratching posts led Anita to purchase rug remnant pieces from Marden's, and nail them to the wall. It did not take him long to discover that not only did he now have a great place to sharpen his claws, but it proved to be a wonderful outlet for his artistic abilities!
When a new piece of rug is attached to the wall, Henry takes time to look it over to see how he can best use it to express his ideas and feelings. Then he begins his work, pulling a loop out here and a thread out there, until the piece is finished.
Most of Henry's fiber art wall hangings take months to complete. As soon as he is finished, he lets Anita know so she can remove it from the wall and replace it with a fresh piece of carpet.
While Anita has displayed Henry's wall hangings in her apartment for some time, this is the first public exhibit of his work.~~
If you doubt that Henry IS a true cat artist, here are close-ups of Henry's fabric art from his public exhibition:
Update- Anita left a note in the comments that Henry has become so popular that he now has a store at Cafe Press.
As God is my witness, I've seen things hanging in museums that didn't have the depth and reach that Henry exhibits!
ReplyDeletedepth and reach! lol.
ReplyDeleteMarion, you might enjoy reading the catalog comments at the online exhibit of cat paintings and other cat art in the link I gave. They are quite amusing.
The site doesn't seem to have been updated lately, so I don't know if the museum still exists, or if was mostly a follow-on from the enormous popularity of the the book "why cat's paint".
But, reading through the site, it does seem that some cats do have "artistic" or aesthetic impulses for painting or sculpture.
Our Siamese may be a frustrated sculptor. Whenever the litter is changed in the kitteh boxes she comes over to inspect/approve the job I've done. Almost invariably she'll get in and just rearrange litter a bit and get out, looking pleased. Peter's called her a sculptor for years, but her artworks aren't really the sort that can be displayed!
ReplyDeletep.s. site I meant is linked in post below- Museum of Non Primate art.
ReplyDeleteHenry has become so popular that he now has his own internet store at
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cafepress.com/henrythecat
Anita, thanks! That's exciting. I'll put the link in as a p.s.
ReplyDeleteKeep me posted!