If you’ve walked through the streets of Ithaca, you’ve undoubtedly seen the “Lost Cat” graffiti around town. The Lost Cat street art is a quintessentially Ithacan phenomenon. Over the entirety of the city, there are somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 lost cats. Some are large and full-bodied, others are simply just cat heads. All have the same simple and recognizable stick-figure style. While the Lost Cat street art around town is practically known universally, the artist behind it was unknown by most, until his death almost half a year ago.
John Gavin Mahoney is native to Upstate New York. He attended Vestal High School, and he worked at the State Diner and Paddledockers. Although he had these jobs, he often was homeless. He frequently lived in the “Jungle,” a homeless encampment in Ithaca. Here, he was a pillar of the homeless community. He would construct gravestones for those who died, he’d clean and take care of the area. Many people in the homeless population respected and looked up to Mahoney. Even Mahoney’s art would help the homeless, as the tails or feet of his Lost Cats would often point out directions to safe spaces for the homeless.
After Mahoney passed away at the age of fifty-five, his identity as the artist behind the Lost Cat art was revealed, and his notoriety within the Ithacan community grew. A crowdsourced memorial fund paid for a new statue commemorating the work of the artist. Located at Press Bay Alley on West Green street, the sculpture is a large metal Lost Cat. In addition to this, the official Lost Cat instagram page (@the.stick.cat) has over one thousand followers, and the Reddit user u/slothbrainz even shared their plans for a Lost Cat tattoo.
The website “lostcatitaca.com” hosts an interactive map of the Lost Cats around Ithaca. Each place where a Lost Cat has been spotted has a little red Lost Cat head marking the location. Each site comes with a picture of that specific Lost Cat. The City of Ithaca has so many Lost Cat sightings that the center of Ithaca is practically covered in red. Looking at the map, one can really scope the truly great extent of Mahoney’s work.
Although it is tragic that John Gavin Mahoney was only able to receive such an outpouring of love from the Ithacan community after his death, his actions and his art have changed Ithaca for the better. His Lost Cats didn’t only bring smiles to the faces of many Ithaca residents, but they also helped people find safety and comfort. Mahoney’s legacy lives on in his art and in the memories of his friends.
Visit lostcatithaca.com!