Did Someone Really Pay $15,000 to Paint their Cat - Say it’s not true

Ok, it is not true. But it is an interesting urban legend according to Snope’s Rumor Has it - the site has some wonderfully creative pictures of "painted cats". The story that circulated through email recently is based on a book Why Paint Cats: The Ethics of Feline Aesthetics (Ten Speed Press -September 2002) by Burton Silver and Heather Busch. The authors previously wrote Why Cats Paint published in 1994. While the popular Why Cats Paint profiled the creative output of house pets, Why Paint Cats offers the cat-as-canvas. Both of these books are spoofs - well written, entertaining, and clever - but spoofs nonetheless.

According to the Snope’s write up, "The authors concocted elaborate stories about the cats. The people who supposedly own then, and the artists." The book has a disclaimer that declares that no cat was harmed during the making of the book. This is of course true because the paintings were achieved through image manipulation. Although the author will not confirm his techniques, he says in an email to Snope’s, "We never comment on the techniques used to crate our art, because that’s not the point of the work. We see out role as that of encouraging discussion amongst readers and provoking them to questions their value system."

Enjoy the pictures anyway!

Posted by Barbara.