It is not often you find a pack of dogs sitting around a table playing poker, however, that is

the case when it comes to the series of 18 paintings by the “most famous American artist
you’ve never heard of”, who was of course Cassius Marcellus Coolidge, who painted Dogs
Playing Poker. His famous dog’s playing cards paintings have left their paw prints all over
America, which is the subject we will explore in the article below.
  
Artist Abstract: Who Was Cassius Marcellus Coolidge?

Cassius Marcellus Coolidge was born on 18 September 1844 and lived until 13 January 1934. He
was born in America, New York, in the town Antwerp and grew up in Philadelphia. His family
was known as Quaker farmers. Coolidge reportedly had several jobs before he started working as
an artist, although he did not formally train as one. This was during his 20s; he moved from the
farm during the 1860s.

A Friend in Need by Cassius Marcellus Coolidge in Context

Dogs Playing Poker is the collective name for a series of 18 paintings by the American
artist Cassius Marcellus Coolidge, who often wrote his name as “Kash Koolidge”. In this
article, we take a closer look at one of the most famous paintings from the series titled A Friend
In Need (c. 1903 – 1910). Reportedly, this painting was not sold, but like several of Coolidge’s
other paintings that sold for millions of dollars, it too is worth millions of dollars. 

Formal Analysis: A Brief Compositional Overview

Below we take a closer look at just what these pups are up to by discussing Coolidge’s
painting, A Friend In Need (1903). This painting has been known as one of the more famous
paintings from the Dogs Playing Poker series because of its “casual mood” as some sources
describe. It is also reportedly the most reproduced.

Subject Matter

In A Friend In Need, we see seven dogs sitting around a round poker table, each seemingly
engrossed in their deck of cards, waiting for the winner who might just be the golden-furred dog
with his back to us in the foreground; he is holding what appears to be three Ace cards and being
handed, slyly, the fourth by the Bulldog to his right.

The Bulldog to the right is a white-furred, and he hands, or paws, the fourth Ace card with
his left back leg where the rest of the dogs cannot see; his left front leg is resting on his set
of cards on the tabletop. He has a cigar in his mouth.
Coolidge is capturing the moment in time as the white Bulldog hands the sly Ace to his friend,
however, his friend has not yet taken hold of this card and it leaves the narrative open and us
wondering what the outcome will be of this card game.
If we move clockwise from the two central figures in the foreground to the left, we see a black-
and-white-furred dog leisurely sitting, holding his set of cards in both his paws; he appears to be
looking at his cards.

A detail of A Friend in Need (1903) by Cassius Marcellus Coolidge; Cassius Marcellus

Coolidge, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Next to this dog is what appears to be a St. Bernard with a pipe on the right side (our left) of his
mouth. He is holding up and looking at his set of cards while seemingly glancing to his left (our
right). Similarly, next to him is another dog in the same position, holding up his cards. Although,
his cards cover up his mouth area making it unclear if he is smoking a cigar or pipe. His eyes
seem to be gazing to his left (our right).

Next, with short blackish fur, is the fourth dog from the golden-furred dog with the set of Aces.
He sports a pipe in his mouth and holds it with what looks to be his right paw while his left is
holding his set of cards. His eyes are also seemingly gazing to his left. Is he aware or suspect of
what is happening under the table? Next to him is another light-brown and white-furred dog that
appears engrossed in his set of cards and slightly disengaged from the rest of the group; his head
is tilting towards the left.

This brings us to the main culprit, the Bulldog handing the fourth Ace card to his friend;
indeed, he is “a friend in need” in this painting. This is also what the main narrative of the
painting is about.
A detail of A Friend in Need (1903) by Cassius Marcellus Coolidge; Cassius Marcellus
Coolidge, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
If we look at the surroundings of the painting, we see the dogs are in a room or lounge. There is a
red-shaded cuboid-shaped lamp on the ceiling above, lighting up the central area on the green
poker table. To the right corner of the room, against the wall, is a tall Grandfather clock showing
the time 01:10 AM.

This also indicates to us that the dogs are playing their poker game at late hours of the
evening and that this game has probably been going on for a few hours already.
On the wall directly opposite the viewer’s gaze, there is a painting of what appears to be a
seascape with a few boats; the wall to the left also has a painting, but we can only see part of its
wooden frame. The walls are painted in blue purplish color.

There appears to be another table against the wall in the background with three bottles on it and a
glass of spirits, possibly Whiskey or Brandy. We see more glasses, filled to a third, on the poker
table by each dog, indicating the dogs are enjoying their poker game, smoking their cigars and
pipes, and drinking their drinks.

A detail of A Friend in Need (1903) by Cassius Marcellus Coolidge; Cassius Marcellus

Coolidge, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
This has often been suggested as a highly relatable painting, especially for those who love to get
together with friends and play a game of cards. Generally, A Friend In Need depicts this overall
sense of leisure and good times with friends. This can also be applied to non-poker games like
watching a sports game or having a movie night.
The more we look at the painting the more we notice small details in the dogs’ composure, and
we start to question whether the dogs are leisurely enjoying themselves as well as being highly
suspicious of one another.

This is evident when looking at their eyes, some seem to be gazing at others while others are
not, but this is also questionable. This makes the painting more enjoyable and
simultaneously quite humorous.    
My Interpretation

What does a friend in need is a friend indeed mean?

A friend in need is a friend indeed is a proverb that says a true friend is someone who helps you
when you are in trouble rather than leaving you to fend for yourself. A friend is a person with
whom one shares a bond of mutual respect, affection and trust. Although typically two friends
are not biologically related to each other, with time, they become family. One of the most well-
known phrases about friendship goes - "A friend in need is a friend indeed.” This phrase
summarizes the essence of true friendship. It means that friends who help each other in times of
need are real friends. Not everyone is lucky to have a true friend in life. A true friend is like a
blessing. Such friendship should always be treasured and nurtured with care.