Writings, Essays and Stories |
"Look Papa, Bulls!" |
| This is not meant to be a comprehensive history of animals in art. It's just a few of my own favourite periods and paintings. I wouldn't claim to be an expert on art or animals, but as a pet portrait artist and the owner of three dogs, I have more than a passing interest in the subjects. Animals have been a subject for artists since men first began to paint. The first known examples date back at least 17000 years. When the cave paintings of Altamira, in northern Spain came to light they were, quite literally a revelation. Nobody had any idea that our ancestors were capable of producing the kind of work that was discovered in the caves. The Altamira paintings were discovered in 1879 by a little girl called Maria. Her father was a Spanish nobleman and an amateur archeologist. One day he was looking for pre-historic tools that he thought might have been abandoned on the floor of the cave, thousands of years ago. He'd brought his small daughter, Maria, along with him, and she was getting bored. Maria happened to glance up at the ceiling. "Look Papa", she said, "Bulls!" |
| It was not until 1903, long after the Don's death, that a young French priest called Henri Breuil began making copies of the paintings. Up until then academics had thought the paintings could be no more than 20 years old. Gradually the world became aware of the treasures in the cave. |
| Even more famous are the cave paintings which were found at Lascaux in the south of France in 1940. When Picasso first saw them he said, "We have learned nothing", and when you see this horse, (right) and the many others like it, you can see exactly what he meant. The beauty of it, the strength, the grace and the knowledge that the artist obviously had, are astounding. It is a true work of art. The artist lives in the same world as the horse, and yet he is able to observe it, and to comment on it. This is all the more remarkable when you consider that man was not the all-powerful 'lord of creation' that he likes to think he is today. He was a weak, vulnerable creature who, like a Mississippi gambler, survived on his wits. There is no doubt in my mind that these early men, fully integrated into the natural world as they were, already knew that they were somehow apart from it. Not yet able to control their environment in any significant way, they could still record images from their life on the walls of the cave, as in this painting of a horse from the Lascaux Cave. |
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Here is another painting (left) of a horse by the master of the Lascaux cave. I don't think the spontaneity and energy in this picture has been bettered in any art since. In this picture (right) a man is being attacked and probably killed, by a bison. There are caves containing, not art but human skulls with teeth marks that correspond to the teeth of a leopard or a lion. |
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| We tend to imagine the early artists as solitary figures, scratching away at a rock surface, but that is not how it was. The artist would have been the head of a dedicated team. It might even be appropriate to think in terms of a studio not unlike Michaelangelo's. There was nothing amateurish in the operation. Each of his assistants would have had his own task - mixing the various paint materials, taking care of the brush tools or holding up a torch for the artist. The master would have been on a platform which was supported by scaffolding, perhaps held in place by assistants. Sockets for the scaffolding have been found cut into the walls, along with pestles and mortars in which colours were mixed. Cave water, vegetable and animal oils were used as binders. Primitive crayons have been found. Paint was applied with brush tools or was sprayed on with blow pipes. Colours used were red, red ochre, black, white, yellow and brown. |
| The Magdalenian art system, the first and by far the longest in the history of art, finally came to an end about 12000 years ago, as the cool, near-glacial climate warmed, and humans and animals began to change their way of life. |
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The end of the ice age made agriculture possible, which in turn made it possible for complex cultures to flourish. One of the earliest and most enigmatic was the Ancient Egyptian civilization. I have to admit that I don't much warm to Ancient Egyptian art. I find it rather rigid and oppressive - perhaps you had to be there. But I do like these two cat paintings. The Ancient Egyptians adored cats - worshipped them in fact... |
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These two frescoes are from the Palace of Knossos, in Crete. For a long time Crete was the centre of the Minoan civilization. I'm sure they know what they are doing in this panel on the left, but it looks dangerous to me. The right-hand panel features Dionysos, son of Zeus, sitting on a panther. I hope he knows what he is doing, too. |
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| By 200 BC Rome was becoming the dominant force around the Mediterranean. Although they were great soldiers and engineers, the Romans were not so well-known for their artistic abilities. They borrowed many of their ideas from the Greeks. We know they could be very cruel to animals (and people), but these three charming pictures of birds, uncovered at Pompeii, show a different side of the Roman character |
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These two paintings are both from the 14th century. The little figure on the left is from the Luttrell Psalter, a book named for Sir Geoffrey Luttrell, a wealthy landowner from Lincolnshire. It is full of delightful illustrations. This one shows a dog jumping through a hoop. This vivid illustration (right) is from an 'enluminure' called The Book of Hunting. It shows a group of French veterinarians caring for some hunting dogs. The book was commissioned by Gaston Phebus, Count de Foix of France. It's a kind of teaching book for the Count's huntsmen. The translation I saw describes the Count as a 'scientist out of weapons, love, and more than anything else, a large hunter'. Not a man to trifle with. |
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(left) 'A Young Hare' by Albrecht Durer, one of the best of the Northern Renaissance artists. Painted in 1502, this is a careful, almost scientific study in watercolour and gouache. Durer rejected the medieval view of the artist as a craftsman. He was fully aware of his value as one of the new breed - a Renaissance artist. Durer was influenced by Leonardo da Vinci and was impressed by his use of mathematics in his art. (right) Here is an example of Leonardo's careful study of the anatomy of a horse. Not only did Leonardo set new standards for artists, but he pioneered the modern approach to science, with his accurate studies of nature, and his enquiring mind. He was also fond of animals, and used to buy caged birds in order to set them free. He once said, "The time will come when men will look on the murder of animals as they now look on the murder of men". |
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| Another aspect of the genius of Leonardo.(right) This was painted sometime before the Mona Lisa. It's a beautiful painting of a beautiful girl, probably Cecilia Gallerani, the mistress of Leonardo's patron. The Ermine is nice, too... |
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| Around this time Piero di Cosimo produced this large double panel called 'The Forest Fire'. Although trained in the Florentine tradition he found his own personal and whimsical style, painting allegories and classical myths which were sometimes difficult to decipher. He often included animals, always in a natural and sympathetic light. |
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(left) Rembrandt was born in Leiden in Holland in 1606. He is one of the very greatest painters in Western art. He had a profound understanding of human nature coupled with a brilliant technique. He did many drawings of animals, and there is a completely free and natural quality to them, as with this sketch of a lion. (right) Fabritius was Rembrandt's best pupil. He is regarded as the link between Rembrandt and Vermeer. 'The Goldfinch' is his most popular painting. It has a surprisingly modern feel to it. |
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(left) George Stubbs was born in Liverpool in 1724. He specialised in painting horses. Like Leonardo da Vinci, he made a careful study of the anatomy of horses. His skill brought him success, and he painted many portraits for his aristocratic patrons, like this one called 'Mambrino'. (right) Edwin Landseer (1802 - 73) was another successful English painter. His work tended to be sentimental and mawkish, which chimed well with the Victorian age in which he lived. 'The Monarch of the Glen' is probably his best known, and also least sentimental of his Scottish Highland paintings. |
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(left) 'Little Yellow Horses' was painted by Franz Marc, a German Expressionist. Marc believed in the spirituality of animals, and often used them in his paintings. He was killed at Verdun in 1916. (right) Picasso's art went through many changes in his long career, but he was always a figurative painter. Whether he painted a Spanish bull, the horses of 'Guernica', or this cockeral, his work always had spirit, or as he might say, 'duende'. |
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 I wanted to finish with a modern, living artist, and I came across these superb watercolours by an artist living and working in Wyoming. I couldn't decide which one I preferred, so I've used them both. The artist's name is Sarah Rogers and this is her website:www.sarahrogersart.com |
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| James Donaldson Collins |
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