Attention all cat lovers and Nicolas Cage fans! Cage and his love for his cat have inspired an art exhibit. The exhibit, called Uncaged: The Unbearable Weight of Genius Cat Art, will debut at CatCon from October 1-2, 2022 at the Pasadena Convention Center. The annual convention brings together cat culture and pop culture and has a community of cat lovers that spans the globe.

“Nicolas Cage is an artist’s dream subject — he’s cult, he’s camp, and he DGAF,” said CatCon founder Susan Michals in a statement. “Cats have many of the same characteristics, so why not combine the two and celebrate it on canvas?”

The decision to include Nicolas Cage and his cat Merlin in CatCon came about because Susan Michals noticed Cage’s references to his cats during interviews. In one particularly notable Q&A shared by Lionsgate while promoting the film The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, Cage said “Well, My best friend is a cat. And his name is Merlin. He’s an unusual cat. He’s very affectionate. He loves contact. Sometimes he’ll jump into bed and he’ll hug me, you know? I’ll actually think it’s my wife. Nope, it’s Merlin. And it’s just an amazing, kind of loving, affectionate energy that’s coming off of that cat. He’s a real, a real sweetheart. So that’s my best friend.”

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This inspired Michals, who told Yahoo Entertainment that she wanted "to honor Nicolas Cage, honor his love of cats, honor the fact that… he does things the way he wants to, much like cats.”

Seven artists have created original works of art dedicated to Nicolas Cage and Merlin. One artist, named Brian Hoffman, created an 11-inch by 14-inch print, which is embellished with diamond dust, embossed, and framed in a vintage frame. Entitled Catstor Troy, the piece is a tribute to Cage’s wild-eyed villain Castor Troy in the 1997 film Face/Off. It depicts the actor wearing a blue bow, his head on a retro cartoon girl’s body while being surrounded by three cartoonish cats, which is accompanied by a cartoonish type-style caption that reads “C is for Catstor Troy.”

Vanessa Stockard created an oil-on-board piece entitled Wild at Art, which depicts Cage being embraced by a life-size version of Merlin, who has glowing yellow eyes and a matching yellow wig.

These are just a few examples of the many playful, and heartwarming works of tributary art that will be on display at CatCon. All the works dedicated to Cage and Merlin are whimsical and lighthearted, if not admittedly a bit quirky as well. Cage obviously has an extraordinary relationship with his cat, and the artwork definitely does that relationship justice. The art in Uncaged will be available for sale both in person at Cat Con and online via catartshow.com. Ten percent of the proceeds will go to cat-related charities, such as Ashley’s Kitten Academy, Milo’s Sanctuary, and RedRover.

Cat Art Show was founded by Susan Michals in 2014 and remains one of the world’s most popular art exhibits dedicated to everything relating to the feline form. Some of the featured artists this year include Gary Baseman, FAILE, Mark Ryden, Haroshi, Shepard Fairey, Norman Reedus, and others.

CatCon will take place on October 1 and October 2 in Pasadena, California. You can view more information about the event and purchase tickets online on the event website. Check out a few of the pieces from the show down below.

catstor-troy-brian-hoffman
Image via Brian Hoffman
Lil' Nicolas_Danial Ryan
Image via Danial Ryan 
Wild at Art Vanessa Stockard
Image via Vanessa Stockard