Frame: 20.75" x 14.5" x .5". Cardboard dimensions: 20" x 13.75".

St. John, New Brunswick. Mid 1970s. If Joe Sleep (1914 - 1978) can be associated with one particular image, it is the "cat", an animal that figured prominently in many of his naive yet highly appealing paintings. In this case, it is an intense, slightly disturbed looking black cat. As if a wildly painted cat wasn't enough, the artist placed the subject in a plain green field within a multi-coloured diagonal border. Clearly, Mr. Sleep was trying his best to attract the attention of a passing tourist who might purchase the work from his sidewalk display in Halifax. A startling fine painting by a rambunctious artist who had a short career but accomplished a great deal. Signed lower left, "Joseph Sleep".

Good condition. Some water staining along the right side of the cat and beneath the cat extending to the lower edge.

Paint and felt markers on cardboard.