in the company of...

Skipped out at lunchtime today to visit the Blanton's new exhibit, In the Company of Cats and Dogs. Terrific exhibit - if you're in the area and you like critters (as this blog's proprietors do), you must go see it.

A 2,600-year-old cat is standing by to greet you when you first walk in.

 

Many of the pieces in the show are really moving; there is a photograph of a mother with a baby and a cat lying in bed on a sunny morning that's just stunning. I also particularly enjoyed an etching that featured a sheepdog looking fearfully at the shepherd as the flock scampered away, and a photograph by Lewis Carroll of his brother's hunting dog.

There are a couple pieces (in the "Morality" gallery, I think) that are astonishing in their portrayal of man's cruelty, both to animals and to one another. I didn't expect that, but it does gives the exhibit a bit more depth.

A couple of the pieces are laugh-out-loud funny:

 

The gallery was crowded today. I should know better than to go during any show's opening week. The exhibit runs through September 21, so I'll go and linger a little longer before the fall semester starts, maybe with a better camera next time.