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Point Of View On The Siamese:

The War Of The Types

Text By Catherine Bastide Costes,

While the Siamese is one of the oldest feline breeds, and that a recent opinion poll showed that the breed was the favourite of the French, in front of the Persians and Chartreux, the breeding of this cat is going through a crisis without precedent, which could quickly doom it if things remained unchanged.

The history of the Siamese is very peculiar. Although it made a kingly first appearance into the world of cat fancy in 1871 at Crystal Palace exhibition, its career has been so eventful ever since that a queen would hardly find her kittens. For the first lovers of the breed, all it took a cat to be a Siamese was to have blue eyes and the tips of the body of a darker colour than the rest. But what once was true in the beginning turned out to prove less and less relevant as time went by, as the science of genetics progressed in the same time and the number of breeds boomed. If the gene responsible for the colour of the Siamese can be infused into any type of cats in two generations, one can’t and shouldn’t resume a breed to its colour!
This desire of distinction, plus the creative and demiurge spirit of some breeders, certainly was at the origin of the creation of a new look Siamese cat in the 1970’s. This much longer cat entirely differed from the Siamese imported from the Far East by British diplomats in the 19th century. The changes were progressive at first, until an almost mythical cat turned up – Y-Not Hershey Bar of B-Jay – a chocolate tabby point Siamese with an immoderately long head, and whose influence can still be felt today in many pedigrees. This evolution was a real split-up between the breeders and the public, who didn’t want to follow them, or simply couldn’t because of a lack of information. And to top this lack of knowledge, sometimes even misunderstanding, between the “producers” and the “consumers”, was added the fact that the breeders couldn’t agree between themselves about what was the ideal Siamese. According to the different regions and zones of influence of the various great feline federations, a war of types has emerged, whereas the standard is the same for all! But people apparently don’t have the same reading of the standard. What has been happening in France in the last 20 years is typical of this phenomenon.

You can’t do in two generations what must be done in six…
As the British breeders were at the basis of the breeding of the Siamese, France was under their influence for a long time, preferring cats with a moderate type. Things remained unchanged until the arrival of the American lines, which caused a real revolution in the way people thought of their cats. It must be said that the American Siamese from this period were very impressive. Not only their heads were very long, but they also brought an incredible refinement to the general structure of the cats, with tubular bodies and endless tails. The French breeders rushed on those cats, but their haste lead them to a dead end. Simply because you can’t do in two generations what must be done in six. And careless inbreeding on lines which were not yet known for their weakness had tragic consequences.
One can remember the cats from the Petmark breeding, whose kittens died almost immediately after their birth, and whose death touched many of us. The type was there, indeed, but there was no “user’s guide”! however, the idea of refined and elegant Siamese cats went its way, and some breeders began to think that good would come out of the crossing of the English cats with the American ones. Crosses between English breeder Angela Sayers’ “Solitaires” cats, and some among Vickie Markstein’s healthiest Petmark cats, resulted in very good cats.

What about the French alternative way?
It certainly would have been possible to continue in this direction, by combining the qualities of the ones and of the others, but suddenly, in the mid 90’s, French breeders “discovered” the Siamese cats from the FIFé, this feline federation so powerful in Western and Northern Europe. The FIFé breeders had favoured the cats with long ears large very at the basis, extremely almond-shaped eyes, but whose bodies were often very heavy and tails quite thick. These cats were not for the neophytes either, but they lead breeders to commit excesses by no means more reasonable than the previous ones. Judges undoubtedly played a part in this backward and forward movement: it is indeed much easier to judge a cat on its ears without touching it, than handling it to judge of its muscular tonicity and body refinement.
However, just like in the previous period, there were some moments of grace, especially with the importation of Australian cats issued from English lines (Rama, Korindah), which illustrated the perfect balance between the head and the body.
This schizophrenic situation has now reached its maximum and fashion makes many victims. Instead of looking for a beautiful cat – naturally extreme when you talk about the Siamese – which would combine large and beautiful ears with almond-shaped eyes, and greyhound-like bodies, the French breeders continue on the same pace, and they lose their way, all the more so that they prefer to work completely on their own. There’s a happy medium between the “breathless” CFA Siamese cats and the FIFé Siamese cats, among which some can’t no longer open their eyes: you can find it in the USA or in the Netherlands. These balanced cats – in the standard - are the result of the work of breeders, who won’t listen to the dictates of fashion. They have decided to take their time to achieve their goal. They don’t hesitate to exchange their lines and hopes, over the common rivalry and the miles, as they have understood that the larger the genetic pool is, the more beautiful the cats will be. Choice is one of the main keys to their success.
 

Picture of Y-Not Hershey Bar of B-Jay c 1980
Breeder: Barbara Levine, owner: Larry Levy
Picture: Larry Levy
 
 

Interview with the artist Gerdy Oskam
by Nanda Alstede

If there would have been something like a Gerdy Oskam-fanclub, I absolutely would have become a member! Gerdy is my favourite ‘cat’- artist and I was thrilled having been in a position to interview her. For years one of her works of art, called ‘Explorer of the World’, decorates our room – a showpiece which we cherish!
She lives in a cosy, narrow little street in Alphen aan den Rijn and when I enter her house I find myself in a Land of Cockaigne! Everywhere beautiful figurines which I would like to have for myself!
I only ‘know’ Gerdy from telephone conversations, but I know everything about Franz Joseph, a helpless, motherless moggy-kitten of about 5 weeks, which she found in Germany – where she owes a farmhouse – and took home with her. He grew up with her and became a big red tom-cat. The first thing she tells me is that Franz Joseph died… only 1 ½ years old. I promise her not to write too much about it, as her grief over the death of ‘Big Red’, as she used to call him, is still very fresh and it hurts too much. Luckily there still is Zilla, a very affectionate and present seal tabby point Siamese with beautiful blue eyes, which regularly wants to take part in the conversation; and …. within a few weeks, Zilla will get a friend – a Siamese male kitten will make things complete again.

Gerdy, claiming that she is a disaster as a housewife, serves us a cup of coffee and we take a seat on her couch in her nice, light room which also is her exposition and working room. I cannot keep my eyes off of all those beautiful figurines; even the ones which are not finished yet, I would like to take home!

Gerdy Oskam (58) was born in Nieuwerkerk a/d IJssel; her Zodiac sign is Aries. She is a sculptress and studied art of modelling and sculpture techniques at the Vrije Academie, The Hague. About three times a year she exposes her bronze sculptures and her wall panels at home and abroad. Besides that she also works on assignment.
She is divorced and has two children, a son and a daughter. She always managed to live of her art, because, as she says ‘I’m not capable of doing anything else!’. She did teaching for decades, which took place in her own studios. Since one year she doesn’t own these studios anymore and she quitted teaching at the same time, which she thinks to be extremely pleasant. Teaching is a nice but very intensive and tiring occupation and she likes it being able to work in her garden or simply sit in it and enjoy the sun.
Now her studio is in her house and she wants to organize a permanent exposition and sales room. In October she will open up for the public on Sundays and up till then many things have to be done as during the summer she lives in her house in Germany. Not that she doesn’t do anything over there! On the contrary: in this house, situated in the area of the Moselle, she gives workshops sculpture techniques and modelling to groups of about eight people. Beginning and advanced pupils can take part. A workshop lasts five days in during this period one can learn how to make a personal sculpture out of stone, modelling wax or chamotte clay. You may choose your own stone and you can work in your own tempo. You stay at the 250 years old farmhouse which is situated amidst woods, fields and hills. When the weather is beautiful the work takes place outside and when it rains it is done in a large studio, formerly a stable. It all sounds great to me! I will keep this in mind…. Imagine that some day I would be able to make my own cat sculpture! May be I have undiscovered talents….
The ‘making of’ bronze sculptures is a very complicated process and Gerdy explains to me how this takes place:
There are various ways to produce a bronze sculpture – she describes one of them, called ‘cire-perdue’, which – literally translated – means ‘casting with a lost mould’ – this is a well-known technical term. Cire-perdue can always only be used once. If one wants to make more pieces, one has to use another technology..
The cire-perdue-procedure takes place as follows (the words, indicating the successive steps, are underlined):
1) Modelling of the statue in modelling wax
2) Placing of a cast tap and ventilation channels on the wax mould

3) Followed by so called ‘forming-in’, e.g. making a thick pulp from gypsum, gravel and water.
4) The wax model is splashed with this pulp in order to fill up all the hollow parts as well. This forming of a contra-mould has to be done quickly because the pulp will harden soon.
5) Next comes the so called ‘burning off’. The wax melts in the furnace and is caught in a big reservoir. The moulding pulp is slightly being baked at 750° .
6) Then ‘cooling down’ takes place. The baked, hollow moulds are now placed, at a temperature of 100°, in big hobs with so called Brussels earth (a sandy composition) with the ventilation channels up. This composition supports the mould in order to avoid the danger of breaking as much as possible while moulding in the bronze.
7) Further cooling down. This goes very fast.
8) The moulding material is chopped away
9) The bronze now is ‘free’ and a new piece of art is born!
10) The cast tap and ventilation channels are removed with a saw
11) The moulding skin is removed with jets of water
12) Then follows ‘cicelating’ which is taking away moulding-faults. For this several kinds of tools are used, such as hammers, chisels, files, grinding tools and finally emery-paper.

13)Now the skin of the bronze is provided with colour by means of acids. This is a kind of quickened oxidation process with which the underlying metal is protected from influences from the outside. The arisen dust-layer is removed and the work can eventually be waxed.
14)The piece of art is placed: a hole is bored and a screw-thread turned, after which the work is placed on a socle.
Ready!!

Apart from making bronze sculptures, Gerdy also paints and specializes in matter-panels. These are panels in relief and she uses all kinds of materials which she finds in nature. Various kinds of these panels decorate her walls and they look very special – they trigger your own fantasy. She works most of the time in series, because, as she says, she cannot put enough of her feelings in one single painting. The panels in her studio consist of series of four.
At the moment you can see her work at Galerie Alexandra, Zierikzee and every Sunday at her studio, Alphen a/d Rijn, The Netherlands.
Time flies with such a fascinating interlocutress like Gerdy…. We quickly admire her beautiful garden and once again I gape in admiration at the wonderful sculptures.
Who is Gerdy Oskam? An inspired artist with an amiable personality, or, as she puts it in words herself: ‘A happy human being who loves her work’.
If you are interested in visiting Gerdy’s studio or take part in one of her workshops, you can call her on 0031 172 476258
© Nanda Alstede - 2002
 

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