The Cat 1908

Gwen John's watercolor, "The Cat," hangs here at the Tate. Look at the economical way she’s built up the form. She's a master of suggestion rather than description. There's an amazing tension between the soft, diluted washes of the background, and the more decisive strokes that define the cat's features. The way she allows the watercolor to bloom and spread gives a sense of the cat’s softness, its almost ethereal presence. John focuses on the cat's gaze with these small, dark pools of pigment. There's so much personality in those tiny eyes! The limited palette, mostly muted browns and grays, enhances the mood. John, like Agnes Martin, knew that simplicity can be incredibly powerful. Both artists share a similar spirit of quiet observation and contemplative mark-making. And ultimately, with the best art, there’s no single right way to see it.