Warhol's iconic purple (blue?) cat.
Photo: Twitter/@TheWarholMuseum
The Horniman Museum shared this terrifying look inside the mind of a cat (literally).
Photo: Twitter/@HornimanMuseum
The National Portrait Gallery shared this meddlesome kitty from an Edward Penfield lithograph.
Photo: Twitter/@NPG
MoMA's Robert Gober "Cat Litter" reminds us of the unpleasantries of pet ownership.
Photo: Twitter/@MuseumModernArt
This super-famous feline lives at the American History Museum.
Photo: Twitter/@amhistorymuseum
London's Wellcome Collection shared this ornate painting by Louis Wain.
Photo: Twitter/@ExploreWellcome
The Portland Art Museum's wide-eyed contribution.
Photo: Instagram/@portlandartmuseum
This Chrysler Museum cat is the happiest ever.
Photo: Instagram/@chryslermuseum
Move over, small dogs. Cats are the best accessories according to Smithsonian Libraries.
Photo: Twitter/@SILibraries
Freer and Sackler Galleries asks: Have you hugged your cat today?
Photo: Instagram/@freersackler
Can you spot the cat in Nathan Oliveira's "Go Home, Cat"?
Photo: Instagram/@hirshhorn
Kandinsky's black cat courtesy of The Guggenheim.
Photo: Instagram/@guggenheim
Another happy cat sculpture, this time from the CU Art Museum.
Photo: Instagram/@cuartmuseum
This head dates back to 332—30 B.C. How old is that in cat years?
Photo: Instagram/@NMNH
It's okay, Vancouver Art Gallery, we do it all the time.
Photo: Instagram/@vanartgallery
In case you missed it, yesterday was a very important (and very adorable) holiday: #MuseumCats Day. What’s a museum cat, you ask? Well, according to participants like The Andy Warhol Museum, The Museum of Modern Art, and The National Portrait Gallery, a museum cat can be many things. From an ancient mummified head to a smiling sculpture to an international celebrity appearing on the lunchboxes of little girls everywhere, museum cats prove kitties were cool eons before their online heyday. Take that, Grumpy Cat.
Museum cats also serve as a reminder that many of our favorite artists drew inspiration from their four-legged friends. From Warhol’s amusingly named artist book 25 Cats Name Sam and One Blue Pussy to a Kandinsky kitten you may not have known existed, the cat canon is indeed plentiful.