Untitled (Cats)

The Great Depression limited Wallace’s ability to sell and buy supplies for her work. She wrote to a friend, “Betty wants to buy one of the silk decorations—but people want low prices. However I’m trying to finish up some still life—but my paints are all so old & dried up it takes twice as long to paint.” Her use of old, dried paint could have contributed to this painting’s rough texture.

Wallace would have gladly used whichever supplies she had available to paint the many cats she kept as companions in her home. Her archives contain sketches, poems, and musings celebrating their distinctive personalities.