One of my most popular posts continues to be Wain’s Kaleidoscope Cats, illustrating the strange transition of Louis Wain. A popular artist in England in the late 1800s and early 1900s, he drew thousands of pictures of cats engaged in everyday activities which were widely published. He was eventually committed to a mental hospital after displaying schizophrenic symptoms. From Wikipedia:

“He had always been considered quite charming but odd, and often had difficulty in distinguishing between fact and fantasy. His behavior and personality changed, and he began to suffer from delusions with the onset of schizophrenia. Whereas he had been a mild-mannered and trusting man, he became hostile and suspicious, particularly towards his sisters. He claimed that the flickering of the cinema screen had robbed the electricity from their brains.

When his sisters could no longer cope with his erratic and occasionally violent behavior, he was finally committed in 1924 to a pauper ward of Springfield Mental Hospital in Tooting. A year later, he was discovered there and his circumstances were widely publicized, leading to appeals from such figures as H. G. Wells and the personal intervention of the Prime Minister. Wain was eventually transferred to Napsbury Hospital north of London. This hospital was relatively pleasant, with a garden and colony of cats, and he spent his final 15 years there in peace. While he became increasingly deluded, his erratic mood swings subsided, and he continued drawing for pleasure.

Some speculate that the onset of Wain’s schizophrenia was precipitated by toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection that can be contracted from cats.”

Large rotated block lettering: “Oh!!! I have no feelings for others, it is all inside.”
Smaller block lettering: “I am a bit gone on myself and have to make it up with my feelings.”
Corner mirrored cursive script: “Who I met someone I have just met. I am his card now, but I want to part with it.”

Wain began to exhibit the symptoms of schizophrenia around 1910, and was committed to a mental hospital in 1924.

The following pictures of cats are typically interpreted as illustrating the increasing effects of his schizophrenia. Some debate this however, as Wain did not date his paintings, and argue that he was simply experimenting with patterns reflecting his mother’s work designing textiles.

Regardless of explanation, they remain utterly fascinating.

All images copyright the Archives and Museum of Bethlem Royal Hospital.

Like this post? Check out More of Wain’s Kaleideoscope Cats.