September 16, 1911

Hishida Shunsō  (September 21, 1874 to  September 16, 1911) Japanese artist of the Meiji era, is a very famous artist in Japan, and his fondness of cat paintings is part of that. Japanese culture has valued felines centuries longer than the West. Shunso traveled in Europe and may have been influenced by Impressionism. His art used a gradation of colors which was attacked by his countrymen as 'vague.' He in fact later made lines more prominent within his subtle color changes, probably as a result of the criticism. 



The above is dated to 1906, and titled, "Cat and Plum Blossoms."