Tigers and Other Wildcats in Art

 

by Mary-Ann Carlson

My longtime friend, Mary-Ann Carlson is an accomplished watercolorist. Recently, I caught up with her and she gifted me several prints of her masterpieces. This tiger painting got me wondering about artists famous for including tigers (and other wildcats) in their artwork.

Tiger in a Tropical Storm (Surprised!)
(1891), Rousseau

Another of my favorite artists is Henri Rousseau. In his Tiger in a Tropical Storm (Surprised!), we see a lavish tropical scene including bolts of white lightning and a somewhat hidden tiger about to pounce on its prey. The focus is on the gleaming head of the tiger, though I can't help looking toward the lower right at the solid dark green shape of the plant. he has balance the tree limb in the upper corner with the plant, as well as the hind end of the tiger with the red foliage. Because of the storm, the tone of the painting is quite dark, except for the highlight on the front half of the tiger in the foreground.

Sleeping Gypsy (1897), Rousseau

Probably his most famous work is the later Sleeping Gypsy in which a lion is prominently portrayed centrally in the composition. It feels somewhat surreal. His works were often judged as 'childish' by critics who thought the artist lacked training. The reclining figure appears stiff and unaware of the lion. Later though, he was acclaimed for his Post-Impressionist works.

Frida Kahlo and the Tiger,
Miller

I found this painting by David Miller, depicting artist, Frida Kahlo with a tiger across her lap. Although the artist herself never included tigers in her self-portraits, she did paint herself with monkeys. Her portraits were not only surreal but tended to go beyond the macabre.

Poised, Eric Wilson

Contemporary artist, Eric Wilson paints impressive animal portraits in watercolor, oil, and pastel. This one happens to be watercolor. I'd imagine that it is even more impressive in-person!

Royal Tiger (1829), Delacroix

Perhaps not as visually impressive is this lithograph by Eugène Delacroix. Many artists never actually saw wild animals in their native habitats, so they relied upon visits to zoos and maybe photographs. Still, like historic battles among human beings, artists spent their time researching, studying, and sketching before completing a painting. I also appreciate works in multiple media. His Tiger Lying in the Desert (1846) is less impressive as an etching!

African Amber - Lioness Pair (1980), Bateman

Canadian painter Robert Bateman is famous for painting wildlife, including birds, bears and wildcats. He was a teacher of art and Geography. Here he has captured two lionesses using largely amber tones. I did a two-day pastels class to teach the technique, and on the second day challenged my students to use a limited palette of black, white, light and dark brown, and gray. Nature is often its own camouflage.

Love is in the Air (2010), Brenders

Another wildlife artist is Belgian Naturalist and Painter, Carl Brenders. I liken his work to that of Byron Birdsall, whose work I featured in my March 2024 post entitled, Watercolor Artist/Teachers. Both artists also remind me of the TV show, Paint This with Jerry Yarnell. I particularly love his rendering of Milk Pelicans. Curiously, Jerry passed away in May 2024. Another great loss was TV personality, Bob Ross in 1995. Nicholas Hankins is now Ross' TV successor.

The Lion at Home (1881), Bonheur

French artist, Rosa Bonheur so loved her animals that she kept a family of lions at her home, often feeding them by hand. She passed away eight years after completing this painting. She would have enjoyed visiting the Olympic Game Farm Park in Sequim, WA.

Jungle Gentleman (1990), Shepherd

British artist David Shepherd, like many of the artists (above) posted here, was a bigtime conservationist. Besides wildlife, he also painted steam locomotives, aircraft, portraits, and landscapes. Apparently, tigers love the water and swim for several hours a day. I'm not sure why there is so much darkness on the right half of his painting. I imagine the moonlight is meant to illuminate the subject.

Artists Born Under Virgo or Libra

Chrysanthemums (1874-6), Tissot

To start posting for the month of September let's look at artists born under the Zodiac signs of Virgo (Aug 23rd thru Sept 22nd) and Libra (Sept 23rd thru Oct 23rd). Virgo artists are hardworking, intelligent, and adventurous, having traits including rational thinking, problem-solving, and an adventurous spirit. Libras, unlike other introverted, unsociable artists, are social butterflies who are outgoing and charming. Libras also have great taste in art and fashion.

French artist, James Tissot (1836-1902), born (in October) under the sign of Libra, painted Chrysanthemums, shown here as the floral symbol for the sign Virgo. Tissot was a friend and mentor of Edgar Degas.

VIRGOS

Thunderstorm (1948), Grandma Moses

One of the most famous American artists born (September 7th) under Virgo is Grandma Moses (1860-1961). She appears in my January 2021 post entitled, Master Artists -- Inspired Late Bloomers and Resilient, Active Seniors. She turned to painting when arthritis kept her from doing her elaborate needlework, but she kept her 'primitive' style. Teachers may use her work as an inspiration for a lesson about the elements of a landscape for younger children. Older children will need to learn the principles of perspective and proportion, not present in her work, for learning about space.

Constellations (1938), Hans Arp

German-French Sculptor, painter, poet, Jeans Hans Arp (1886-1966) was born September 15th. His Constellations linoleum cut is reminiscent of the biomorphic shapes used by (Capricorn) Henri Matisse. Years ago when I taught my daughter in her 6th-grade classroom, my students traced a Matisse shape and were asked to design a composition around it.

Mecklenburg Autumn (1979), Bearden

American artist Romare Bearden (1911-1988), born September 2nd, is famous for collages using photographs and painted paper in a style derived from Cubism. His work also depicts American black culture like his colleague, Jacob Lawrence. Another great artist for studying the art of collage would be American painter, (Libra) Robert Rauschenberg. I use collage for doing wrapping paper self-portraits, which could also be inspired by portrait artists: Amedeo Modigliani, Gilbert Stuart and Sir Joshua Reynolds.

The Migration Series (1941),
Jacob Lawrence

Felix (inspired by N.C. Wyeth)

In 2017 I visited the Seattle Art Museum and saw the exhibit, Jacob Lawrence: The Migration Series. Born September 7th, 1917, his work chronicled the migration of African Americans from the rural South to the industrious North in the decades following World War I.

Here's a project inspired by N.C. Wyeth that was designed to demonstrate the concept of movement. It would also work for a lesson about Jacob Lawrence. The challenge is cutting out the figures, so this lesson works best with 5th- or 6th-graders.

LIBRAS

Medusa (1597), Caravaggio

My first Libra artist is the controversial Italian painter, Caravaggio (1573-1610), born September 28th. He appeared in my March 2020 post entitled, Artist Frenemies - Friendships, Rivalries, and Competition, about his feud with artist Giovanni. Libras are supposedly non-confrontational although I imagine that Caravaggio exhibited the extremely emotional side of the sign. I've seen his artwork in several museums, but it may be somewhat inappropriate for younger viewers.

The Raft of Medusa (1819), Géricault 

This next artist is French painter and lithographer, Théodore Géricault (1791-1824), born September 26th. His epic masterpiece, The Raft of Medusa (1819), is often compared to Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People (1839). Both are good examples of Romanticism, a movement characterized by intense emotion. A young Delacroix (Taurus) actually posed as one of the dying figures on the raft!

No. 1 (Royal Red and Blue)
(1954), Mark Rothko

Libra Mark Rothko (1903-1970), was an American artist, born September 25th, who was famous for his abstract color field paintings designed to evoke emotion from viewers. While initially studying Architecture in college we did many color studies in order to explore color combinations and the optical effect of placing them adjacent to each other. Another Libra artist whose work I don't claim to understand is Robert Rauschenberg. His three-panel White Painting (1951) is particularly unusual and rather uninspiring!

I focus a lot on art history and researching various artists to add interest to my art lessons. And it's important to find inspiration when creating art! I hope this group of artists inspires you to create your own artwork or delve deeper into learning about these artists and their art movements and styles.

10 Artists With April Birthdays

Self-Portrait (c.1505), Raphael

1. Raphael

The Italian artist Raphael, full name: Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, was born on 6 April 1483 and died on his 37th birthday. His portrait hangs in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy where I visited in May 2011. In this post, I will attempt to show self-portraits of each artist.

Self-Portrait in Studio (1985), Vasarely

2. Victor Vasarely

Some say that Victor Vasarely was the Father of Op Art. He was born on 9 April 1908. He is featured in my April 2020 post about Op and Pop Art. This portrait was painted ~12 years prior to his death. The colors and shapes are reminiscent of those used in many of his geometric paintings. I like how he repeats the shapes and stripes and uses analogous colors of purple and blue for emphasizing his own figure in contrast with the background.

3. Gustav Vigeland

Self-Portrait (1922),
Gustav Vigeland

My next artist is Norwegian sculptor, Gustav Vigeland, who was born on 11 April 1869. His work is featured in my June 2019 post about our visit to Oslo, Norway during our cruise to seven Baltic countries. Although I'd been to Oslo twice before on business, I hadn't taken the time to visit Vigeland Sculpture Park, located in Frogner Park. Don't miss his 212 sculptures made from bronze or granite!

I've never posted a sculptural self-portrait of an artist. He reminds me a bit of the Star Wars character (played by Ian McDiarmid), Naboo Senator (Lord) Palpatine, who led a double life as the phantom menace, Darth Sidious.

Portrait of a Man in Red Chalk
(1512), Leonardo da Vinci

4. Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci was born on 15 April 1452 and, unlike his colleague Raphael, he lived to be 67. As I discussed in my recent Easter Egg post, it was common for artists in the 15th century to use (black, white, or red) chalk in their drawings. I wonder if the drawing was as speckled as it appears, or whether time has taken its toll on the surface. And he looks way older than 60.

Self-portrait With Rita
(c. 1924), Benton

5. Thomas Hart Benton

Thomas Hart Benton, born on 15 April 1889, started the Regionalist art movement along with his colleagues Grant Wood (of American Gothic fame) and John Steuart Curry. Benton and his wife Rita spent their summers in Chilmark, on the Massachusetts island of Martha’s Vineyard, for over 50 years.

Joan Miró Self-Portrait (1917)

              6. Joan Miró

Spanish abstract expressionist and surrealist Joan Miró, born on 20 April 1893, is the inspiration for one of my favorite art lessons about composition. In his compositions, he typically uses primary colors and black. Many artists, including Edgar Degas, liked to use black outlines in their works. I also own books of both artists' works.

Self-Portrait (1799),
J.M.W. Turner

7. J. M. W. Turner

Born on 23 April 1775, English Romantic painter, printmaker, and watercolorist J. M. W. Turner was a master of painting atmospheric effects. In museums, it is common to see mostly landscapes by this artist. It is also common for artists to paint their own portraits early on or until they can afford to hire models or get commissioned work. Rembrandt was too poor an artist and painted >75 self-portraits in his lifetime.

    

Self-Portrait (1947),
Willem de Kooning

8. Willem de Kooning

Willem de Kooning was a Dutch-American abstract expressionist, born on 24 April 1914. He was also the husband of expressionist Elaine de Kooning, whose work was part of the Women of Abstract Expressionism exhibit that I was fortunate to see on one of my trips to Palm Springs.

Young Girl by Bridget Riley

9. Bridget Riley

Born on 24 April 1931, English painter Bridget Riley was known for her op-art paintings. In 2011, the National Portrait Gallery of London had an exhibit of her early portrait drawings, called From Life, but alas no self-portraits.

Self-Portrait in a Green Vest
(1837), Delacroix

10. Eugène Delacroix

French Romantic artist Eugène Delacroix was born 26 April 1798 and is famous for painting the magnificent and large (8′ 6″ x 10′ 8″) Liberty Leading the People, which may be seen at the Louvre Museum in Paris.