year of the monkey

The Chinese Zodiac has circled around to the clever and crafty Monkey again...and though I doubt that these artworthy subjects actually calmed down enough to pose for any of the works below, it seems like once you do put a monkey in a painting, you've really got something unique going on.

Pictured:  The Little Monkey -- Franc Marc (1912); Flowers and Fruit of the Mangosteen, and a Singapore Monkey -- Marianne North (1876); Still Life with Monkey and a Guitar -- Antoine Vollon (1864); The Merry Jesters -- Henri Rousseau (1906); The Monkey Painter -- Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps (1833); Feast of Monkeys -- Jan Brueghel the Elder (1621)


(all images courtesy of www.the-athenaeum.org)