Johnson , who owned 350 cats that she housed in her summer house '' Buena Vista '' near Sonoma , California , commissioned the painting in 1891 . Having never painted a cat before , Kahler spent three years studying cat poses and learning their habits . He reportedly received around $ 5,000 for the painting . The center of the painting shows her cat Sultan , bought by Johnson during a trip to Paris . Johnson lent the painting for the 1893 Chicago World 's Fair , and in the next year it was acquired by Ernest Haquette for his Palace of Art Salon in San Francisco . While the salon was destroyed in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake , the painting survived it . '' My Wife 's Lovers '' subsequently hung in Frank C. Havens ' Piedmont Art Gallery in Piedmont , California , and was later purchased by a couple from Chicago . In November 2015 , the painting was sold at Sotheby 's to a private California buyer for $ 826,000
1906 San Francisco earthquake
1906 San Francisco earthquake
My Wife's Lovers