Andy Warhol – who would have celebrated his 85th birthday today – is renowned for his countless interests, obsessions and muses, and for the lauded king of pop art, animals were no exception, especially cats and dogs.
Warhol’s love of cats began at an early age and was fuelled by his mother Julia’s own appreciation for the species. Indeed, during the pair’s residency at Warhol’s Carnegie Hill townhouse throughout the 1950s and '60s, they surrounded themselves with cats, all of which were named Sam except for one called Hester. They had so many that friends remember their giving away kittens on a frequent basis. It was during this period that Warhol self-published his book 25 Cats Name Sam and One Blue Pussy (1954), a series of ink wash cat portraits, as well as a book of Julia’s cat drawings entitled Holy Cats by Andy Warhol’s Mother.
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