If you’re a fan of the fictional character Charlotte York’s cocker spaniel, Elizabeth Taylor, you might find the name of the New York Historical Society’s new exhibit funny, even cheeky.
“Pets and the City,” which opened Oct. 25, traces New Yorkers’ historical obsession with finding and caring for animals. The show arrives in Manhattan at the same time that Manhattan City Councilman Sean Abreu proposed a bill that would allow residents to use paid sick leave to care for their pets.
William Davis Hustler “William Gray Hustler sitting at a small table eating Quaker puffed rice cereal with his cat lady (c. 1912), print from digitized negative (Image courtesy of Patricia D.・Klingenstein Library, New York Historical Society)
Roberta J.M. Olson, curator emeritus of drawings at the New York Historical Society, spent three years planning the exhibition, she told Hyperallergic. The exhibition promotes the ideas of Henry Berg, founder of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), and offers visitors a sense of comfort in the midst of “the horror, war, and inhumanity of today’s world.” he said at a press preview. When humans are kind to animals, humans become righteous to humans. ”
The exhibition begins with a small gallery space displaying works documenting the interactions between the region’s animals and indigenous people. A large painting by Takarora artist David Cusick imagines a mythical Iroquois hunter with a deer and bear under his belt. At one end is a bronze sculpture by John Quincy Adams Ward, commonly titled “The Indian Hunter” (1860), with wall text describing a “romantic depiction” of a young man and his domestic dog. It is described as promoting “. Across the room is a 1729 land deed housed in a glass box, containing the signature of an unidentified woman represented by a turtle icon.
Takarora artist David Cusick’s “Mythical Iroquois Giant with Deer and Bear Weapons Under His Belt” (1827). “Indian Hunter” by John Quincy Adams Ward in 1860. engraved.
Emma Thursby, the Brooklyn-born birder and musician who captured the strange end of the human-animal relationship, fought and won permission to take her pet mynah on a train from Buffalo to Utica in 1893. exhibits several of her own crafts. A letter from the Pullman Palace Car Company, housed in a glass case, reads: “Miss Emma Thursby has permission to carry her pet bird on the oar.”
Visitors will then encounter 18th-century portraits of the children and pets of New York’s early settlers, drawn from Dutch and English visual traditions. According to Olson, in these early works children were depicted with lambs and deer, which symbolized harmony and peace to emphasize the moral righteousness of the subjects. Further down the gallery, Victorian portraits display more traditional depictions of children and kittens.
A sign warning of a $100 fine for not cleaning up dog poop during Ed Koch’s mayoral tenure (1977-1981) Olson stares at George Whiting Flagg’s “The Lady and the Parrot” (1835).
The section entitled Pet Jobs features World War I carrier pigeon Cher Ami. A message carried 40 miles by bird to New York’s 77th Infantry Division fighting in France is placed in a glass case. Nearby, a stuffed golden retriever and a portrait of a puppy commemorate Seeing Eye, an organization that trains guide dogs for the visually impaired.
A display of political memorabilia reminiscent of election pets (a dog-sized collar with a pride flag and dog bone that reads “Pride for Obama, LGBT for Obama” attempts to fuse all progressive issues) (e.g. bandanas) have questioned the use of pets in politics. campaign.
Copaganda the dog in a quirky display with two prints honoring the New York City Police Department’s K-9 unit and a wall explaining how dogs help police in their mission to “protect the lives of citizens.” text is attached. By smelling drugs or explosives. The dog was photographed sniffing the package and standing with the officer.
The introduction of K-9 units by police began during the civil rights movement, and some of the most infamous journalistic photos of protests showed police unleashing German shepherds on black demonstrators. There is.
Seeing Eye’s stuffed animals in front of Maureen Nowak’s photo, “Three puppy trainees wearing green Seeing Eye Puppy Razor Program bandanas” (2022)
Perhaps the forerunner of today’s pigeon influencers, Anton van Daalen holds a pigeon in his documentary Anton: Circling Home (2020), which chronicles his pigeon coop at his Alphabet City studio. It is depicted as being there.
The exhibition focuses on New York as the epicenter of the animal rights movement, which began in 1866, when Henry Berg founded the ASPCA, and the same year the state legislature passed the nation’s first law prohibiting animal cruelty. Masu.
At the very end of the gallery space, a photo homage to Flaco, the great eagle owl who escaped from the Central Park Zoo and lived freely until flying into the building in February, is on display, leading to a new project promoting bird-friendly architecture. This led to the law.
On the wall near the gallery exit, Olson leaves visitors with boldly printed quotes from the children’s film The Secret Life of Pets (2016): we are faithful We are definitely the best pets ever. ”
A case of political stickers and dog collars documents the use of pets in the American presidential election. Gordon Parks, A Harlem Woman and Her Dog (1943), printed from a digitized image (Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Washington, DC) Pets and the City will be available at the New York Museum of History on April 20 Society is exhibited up to. Seymour Joseph Guy’s The Girl and the Kitten (c. 1862) depicts a girl playing with a kitten using yarn. Olson, “Property Deeds for Albany County ‘South of the Macuas River, Signed by Native Americans” (1729), William Davis Hassler, “Father Theisen and the Dog Brownie” (c. 1911-1921), engraving points out. From a digitized negative (Image courtesy of Patricia D. Klingenstein Library, New York Historical Society)
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