With a few carved lines, Dutch printmaker Julie de Graag (18 July 1877 – 2 February 1924) transformed ordinary cats into extraordinary works of art. A century later, her wonderfully simple feline portraits remain as captivating as ever.
Drie katten Julie de Graag (signed by artist), 1916 (buy her art)
Working in the Netherlands during the early twentieth century, De Graag developed a distinctive style of printmaking that reduced animals, plants and everyday objects to their simplest forms. Her woodcuts are small, beautifully composed and surprisingly modern. Yet it is perhaps her cats, with their rounded bodies, pointed ears and unmistakable personalities, that best demonstrate her extraordinary ability to say so much with so little.
Born Anna Julia de Graag in Gorinchem in 1877, she studied at the Academy of Art in The Hague before specialising in printmaking. Influenced by the decorative simplicity of Art Nouveau, she developed an artistic language built around strong outlines, flat areas of colour and carefully balanced compositions.
Although De Graag was admired by fellow artists during her lifetime, her name never achieved the international recognition of her younger contemporary, M. C. Escher.
The two artists shared an interest in nature and the expressive possibilities of printmaking. Both emerged from a Dutch artistic environment shaped by careful observation and decorative design, although their careers developed in different directions.
De Graag’s life was also marked by considerable hardship. In 1908, a fire destroyed her studio and much of her early work. She eventually returned to printmaking, producing many of the animal images for which she is now best remembered. After years of struggling with depression, she died by suicide in 1924, aged 46.
Her work has since been preserved in major Dutch collections, including the Rijksmuseum and the Kröller-Müller Museum. A 2024–25 exhibition at Escher in The Palace also brought renewed attention to her achievements.
opnamedatum: 2017-06-29
Portrait of Julie de Graag by Bertha van Hasselt, 1922
You can buy prints, cards, t-shirts and more by the brilliant Julie de Graag in our shop.
Would you like to support Flashbak?
Please consider making a donation to our site. We don't want to rely on ads to bring you the best of visual culture. You can also support us by signing up to our Mailing List. And you can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. For great art and culture delivered to your door, visit our shop.
