A Saturnine Cat

What does a saturnine cat look like? I have never had an occasion to think about, much less respond to, this question, but I was inspired to do some research after reading a review in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal about a new exhibition, Nature in America: Taming the Landscape, presented at the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center in Poughkeepsie, New York.



Critic Barrymore Laurence Scherer cites an untitled pen-and-ink drawing from 1933 by Rosella Hartman, and he writes that the artist “depicts the smooth, sensual contours of her two [nude] figures and their saturnine cat.” Hmmm. Check out the slideshow, #10: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303343404577519101725598594.html#slide/10

Here is a translation, from art critic to Cat Lady: According to my unofficial Guide to Feline Body Language, that’s simply a self-absorbed cat.




Query of the Day: Is your cat saturnine?