Puss in Boots

Puss in Boots of 1877, at Dundee Art Galleries and Museums, takes its title from the famous fairy tale first published by Charles Perrault in 1697, in which a clever cat secures a fortune for its master through a series of cunning ruses. The subject was widely popular in Victorian illustrated books and pantomime, and Millais's choice of the title for a painting of a child almost certainly reflects the mid-Victorian fashion for such fairy-tale allusions in works depicting appealing young sitters. Millais painted numerous portraits and fancy pictures of children that drew on literary and folk-tale titles to give an imaginative dimension to what might otherwise be straightforward depictions. Dundee's collection of Victorian art reflects the city's prosperity during the jute and textile industries' peak, and works like this were acquired as evidence of civic cultural engagement.

Oil on canvas, the painting uses Millais's characteristic warm palette and fluid technique for depicting children. The child's expression is lively and natural, achieved through careful observation rather than posed formality. The background is simplified to focus attention on the figure's face and costume.