The Daily Valdemar No. 42: April 23

Valdemar Andersen, from Børnerim (Children's Poems) by Louis Levy, Gyldendal 1904.

Today's moment of calm is a worship of cats of all varieties.

The author Louis Levy received a very special treatment by Valdemar Andersen in Levy's book of poems for children in 1904, which Valdemar illustrated. As the narrator of a poem written to his daughter, Levy and his daughter were portrayed together. The poem is a tribute to his strong-willed girl, who shall soon grow up and go her own way in life. For now they are united in understanding and on her father's side his pride in her. He is still the one telling the story, filling out his half of the picture plane, while she is already pointing out of the frame.

That frame, though... with wild cats forming a circle around them, curving and bending as they walk. The fable animals within the interlace patterns of the Viking Age were roaring with legs reaching to all sides forming part of interlacing and the cats before us are hissing with paws trotting a soft rhythm across the panel. One half is dotted like leopards and the other half striped like tigers and one cat is half of each to even out the rhythm. All of them are little house cats with big dreams.