# The Bachelor Party by Louis Wain (By 1939) Canonical article: https://www.artifact-archive.com/archive/louis-wain-the-bachelor-party - **Painting:** The Bachelor Party - **Artist:** Louis Wain - **Date:** By 1939 - **Medium:** Oil on canvas - **Dimensions:** 29.5 × 60 cm - **Period:** Victorian and Edwardian illustration - **Culture:** British A long table of cats in evening dress fills this oil painting, each face given a distinct expression. The scene turns a human bachelor party into a crowded comedy of types. ## High-resolution image, free to copy [The Bachelor Party by Louis Wain (By 1939) | Free to copy, high-resolution image](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Louis_Wain_The_bachelor_party.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original) Available image: 960 × 460 pixels. Image credit: Louis Wain. Wikimedia Commons. Reuse terms: [Public domain](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/). [Image source and credits](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Louis_Wain_The_bachelor_party.jpg). ## The story Wain painted The Bachelor Party by 1939, the year of his death. The work is oil on canvas and measures 29.5 by 60 cm. ## About the artist ### Louis Wain 5 August 1860 to 4 July 1939 Wain was a British illustrator and painter best known for his anthropomorphic cats. Born in Clerkenwell, London, he trained at the West London School of Art and taught at Camberwell before building a career in illustrated papers, children's books and postcards. His cats move through theatres, clubs, shops and family celebrations, and his later patterned images have become some of his most discussed work. - **Born:** 5 August 1860 - **Died:** 4 July 1939 - **Nationality:** British - **Birthplace:** Clerkenwell, London, England - **Died in:** St Albans, Hertfordshire, England ![Artist portrait of Louis Wain]() Artist portrait. Image credit: Unknown photographer. [Image source](). [Licence: Public domain](). - [Wikipedia: Louis Wain]() - [Wikimedia Commons: Louis Wain]() ## Research and reference record ### Subject and iconography Research section ID: subject. Claim ID: legacy-article-1-1. Evidence: visual_observation. The composition is a horizontal band of seated cats. Top hats, glasses and cigars mark the figures as a male group, while their rounded faces and varied glances keep the scene from becoming a uniform row. The table edge and the dark background hold the group together. Source IDs: s1. - [Wikimedia Commons: Louis Wain The bachelor party.jpg, n.d.](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Louis_Wain_The_bachelor_party.jpg) [s1] ### Historical context Research section ID: context. Claim ID: legacy-history. Evidence: article. Wain painted The Bachelor Party by 1939, the year of his death. The work is oil on canvas and measures 29.5 by 60 cm. Source IDs: none linked in the published record. ### Wain's cat world Research section ID: article-notes-2. Claim ID: legacy-article-2-1. Evidence: article. Wain built his career on anthropomorphic cats, publishing them in illustrated papers and children's books. The Bachelor Party belongs to that mature comic mode, where cat anatomy carries human social roles. Source IDs: s2. - [Wikipedia: Louis Wain, n.d.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Wain) [s2] ### Reading the image Research section ID: article-notes-3. Claim ID: legacy-article-3-1. Evidence: article. The painting is less a portrait of particular sitters than a study of group behaviour. Its humour comes from the mismatch between formal human dress and cat faces, a device Wain used throughout his commercial work. Source IDs: s2. - [Wikipedia: Louis Wain, n.d.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Wain) [s2] ### Additional published facts - Oil on canvas - 29.5 × 60 cm - Painted by 1939 - Signed Louis Wain ## Sources and literature ### [s1] Wikimedia Commons: Louis Wain The bachelor party.jpg Wikimedia Commons: Louis Wain The bachelor party.jpg (n.d.). Wikimedia Commons. Available at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Louis_Wain_The_bachelor_party.jpg Publisher: Wikimedia Commons. Type: image-record. URL: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Louis_Wain_The_bachelor_party.jpg Authors / editors: Not recorded. Publication year: Not recorded. ### [s2] Wikipedia: Louis Wain Wikipedia: Louis Wain (n.d.). Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Wain Publisher: Wikipedia. Type: secondary. URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Wain Authors / editors: Not recorded. Publication year: Not recorded. ## Editorial note Metadata follows the Wikimedia Commons file record. The medium and date are not independently verified. ## Coverage and revisions Recorded scope: Not recorded Scope updated on: Not recorded Bibliography entries held: 2. Literature coverage is accumulating. Finding or cataloguing a publication does not mean it has been consulted. A missing consultation status is not recorded. The record does not claim that all literature has been found. Editorial review date: 2026-10-19. ## Product range [Browse ArtifactArchive's current product range](https://www.artifact-archive.com/shop). [This artwork's editions and availability](https://www.artifact-archive.com/archive/louis-wain-the-bachelor-party#prints). 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