Mary Swanzy HRHA (1882-1978) Cat in the Suburbs Oil on board, 50 x 60cm (20 x 24'') Exhibited: Mary Swanzy Retrospective, Hugh Lane Gallery, June 1968, Cat. No. 65 The image of a white cat...

Mary Swanzy HRHA (1882-1978) Cat in the Suburbs Oil on board, 50 x 60cm (20 x 24'') Exhibited: Mary Swanzy Retrospective, Hugh Lane Gallery, June 1968, Cat. No. 65 The image of a white cat appears in several pictures by Swanzy, including 'The Clown', 'Cat on the Terrace' and the present picture, suggesting that she may have owned such a pet in her later life, or remembered it from her childhood. Her view in all these pictures is plainly one of affection. 'Cat on a Terrace' included in the Mary Swanzy Exhibition at The Dawson Gallery in 1974, shows the animal sleeping, head resting on a ledge, facing towards the viewer, with its tail curled beside it. The sleeping cat in the present picture is viewed from the side. Its tail is curled beside it, but its front paw it tucked op, so that its pink pads are visible. It is evidently a particular cat for it has slight tortoiseshell markings on its head, and a pink collar with a golf bell around its neck. The cracked gatepost on which the cat sits, and the crumbling gateposts and wall with faded posters behind the old village, and neglected orchard of trees, are suggestive of neglect and decay, of times passed and memories of earlier days: perhaps a crumbling demesne which Swanzy remembered from her childhood in Ireland or from life in England, combined with a pretty Mediterranean or Balkan village with red and blue roofs, and orchards, remembered from her travels after the First World War. In spite of the friendly cat in the foreground, there is a faded, nostalgic mood, empty of people telling of other days, the losses of War, and the departure of friends. The run down setting is contrasted by the straight lines of the avenue that runs into the distance. Swanzy employs a soft palette of whites, pale pinks, yellows, pale greens and reds, to convey a faded dreamy atmosphere. 'Cat in the Suburbs' was included in the large Mary Swanzy Retrospective Exhibition held at the Hugh Lane Gallery in Dublin in 1968. Julian Campbell, October 2008

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