Better With a Cat On It

Have you ever looked at your breakfast and felt something was missing? Not more milk, not a better grain. A cat. Sitting directly in the bowl, staring up at you with that particular expression of blank, aristocratic contempt that only cats can sustain for extended periods.

The Cats in Food Instagram does exactly this. A Russian artist and illustrator named Ksenia digitally places small, dignified animals into food—ice cream, pizza, piles of oranges, whatever’s available. The Photoshop ranges from seamless to impressionist, but the premise is so airtight it doesn’t matter. The internet has been correct about cats for fifteen years and shows no sign of course-correcting.

I don’t own a cat. I’m genuinely not sure I have the emotional bandwidth for something that would judge me that openly and at such close range. But if I did, I’d arrange a brunch with it installed on the cheese board, looking mildly offended by every guest. I can’t think of a better centerpiece.