Isoda KoryusaiJapanese, 1735–1790Cat Catching an Insect
Can I see it?
Not on view at present
Where is “Cat Catching an Insect” now? Collection: Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Not on view at present. Checked September 25, 2026.
Victoria and Albert Museum
London, United Kingdom
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the painting
Koryûsai is best known for his images of beautiful women but here shows his skill at drawing from nature. The smug cat seems to have just clamped its jaws around the unfortunate grasshopper.
This sheet is a copyist's drawing and would have been copied from Koryûsai's original sketches. The copyist's drawing is usually destroyed when the initial printing block is carved. The survival of this work suggests that the design was never realised as a finished print.
Victoria and Albert Museum
Details
- Accession number
- E.5102-1910
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- Victoria and Albert Museum
- Image: Victoria and Albert Museum — © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
