08/20/2026
Meow, Clowder!
As a follow-up to our post on feline agility, we turn our attention to the Japanese ukiyo-e master Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798–1861). His art captured warriors, legends, and mythical creatures, yet he had a special fondness for cats. They appear throughout his prints, sometimes in the background, and sometimes as the stars themselves.
🐾 One of his most famous works is “Cats Suggested as the Fifty-Three Stations of the Tōkaidō” (1850). This series was a playful parody of Hiroshige’s travel prints that showed the post stations along the route from Edo to Kyoto. Instead of travelers, Kuniyoshi filled the prints with cats.
🐾 The title refers to the 53 stations, but Kuniyoshi also included Edo at the beginning and Kyoto at the end. That brings the total number of cats to 55.
🐾 Each cat is given its own expression or pose, often tied to a pun on the station name. A mother cat with kittens for Miya, a scruffy stray for Ishibe, and so on. These playful touches show both his humor and his eye for feline behavior.
🐾 This print is one of the most charming examples of cats in world art, blending cultural reference, language play, and the universal appeal of feline antics.
Kuniyoshi’s cats remind us that humans have been fascinated by our agility, our mystery, and our mischief for centuries. His work sits at the crossroads of art and affection, showing that cats were as central to imagination in 19th-century Japan as they are to us today.
Do mew see a cat in your life who could have stepped straight out of Kuniyoshi’s prints? We would love to see them.
Paws & Purrs 🐾,
The Professor, Kitty Clowder Cat Ambassador
