Animal

Animals are often featured in news, sometimes in heartwarming tales of human and animal companionship and other times in heartbreaking stories of illegal trade and endangered species. Animals are even present in social sciences, especially thank to  ethology (behavioural sciences of animals in their natural habitat). They have fascinated philosophers from Antiquity all the way through to today and they are even present in the medical realm, as the benefits of animal-assisted therapies have been scientifically proven. 

The relationship between humans and animals is also taken into account in the politics, most notably when debating topics related to ecology, the protection of ecosystems and sustainable development. Thus, animals might be seen as a crucial indicator of humanity's concerns. 

As well in these many sectors, animals are also very much present in the arts. A number of art museums have decided exhibitions to animals including the Cluny Museum in Paris and MoMA PS1 in New York. Whether simply a humble spectator in an 18th century painting or the central subject of a Courbet painting, animals are present throughout the history of art. From symbolic, to esthetic, to abstract, to animal drawings meant to simply record their appearance...all these representations have played a role in influencing artists and also how we characterise and think of individual animals.

Each civilisation has represented the animal on multiples supports (mosaics, metal, stone, bones, etc.) as seen on the Nerja cave wall paintings in Andalusia discovered in 1925. Animal iconography has had multiple purposes, varying according to the era and place. Bats, for example, are often used to represent death, fear or superstition in Western art, whereas the Chinese see them as a sign of happiness. The omnipresence of animals within cultures across the globe is probably down to the similarities between men and animal, a source of both fascination and fear. 

In this selection, Artsper helps you to discover the beauty of the animal kingdom, its diversity, strength and fragility. Artists depict animals in a huge range of mediums: sculpture, painting, photographs, and drawings. Contemporary artists bring an original and poetic vision to their representations of the animals with whom we share our world.

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Design, Kong Oil, Richard Orlinski

Richard Orlinski

Design . 18 x 9.5 x 4.5 cm Design . 7.1 x 3.7 x 1.8 inch

CHF 427

Print, Love, Takashi Murakami

Takashi Murakami

Print . 50 x 50 cm Print . 19.7 x 19.7 inch

CHF 2,064

Print, Angels, Menashe Kadishman

Menashe Kadishman

Print . 53 x 73 x 0.5 cm Print . 20.9 x 28.7 x 0.2 inch

CHF 1,246

Print, Hell Bent, Mark Maggiori

Mark Maggiori

Print . 50.8 x 48.3 cm Print . 20 x 19 inch

CHF 1,117

Print, Dragon, Robert Combas

Robert Combas

Print . 56 x 76 cm Print . 22 x 29.9 inch

CHF 2,526

Design, Us, Roby Dwi Antono

Us

Roby Dwi Antono

Design . 80 x 40 x 5 cm Design . 31.5 x 15.7 x 2 inch

CHF 1,846

Print, Homard, Bernard Buffet

Bernard Buffet

Print . 56.5 x 75.5 x 0.1 cm Print . 22.2 x 29.7 x 0 inch

CHF 3,400

Print, Ameria, Yoann Merienne

Yoann Merienne

Print . 70 x 100 cm Print . 27.6 x 39.4 inch

CHF 777

Print, Blue Horse, Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol

Print . 32 x 80 x 3 cm Print . 12.6 x 31.5 x 1.2 inch

CHF 3,498

Design, Air Jordan Dior, Ske

Ske

Design . 10 x 15 x 11 cm Design . 3.9 x 5.9 x 4.3 inch

CHF 339

Print, Lory, James Jean

James Jean

Print . 35.6 x 28 x 0.2 cm Print . 14 x 11 x 0.1 inch

CHF 1,943

Print, Queen Bee, Mark Ryden

Mark Ryden

Print . 83.8 x 59.7 cm Print . 33 x 23.5 inch

CHF 3,498

Print, The dog, Takeru Amano

Takeru Amano

Print . 69 x 69 cm Print . 27.2 x 27.2 inch

CHF 1,166

Print, Feria 1, Claude Viallat

Claude Viallat

Print . 58 x 46 cm Print . 22.8 x 18.1 inch

CHF 821

Print, Galop de Camargue, Maye

Maye

Print . 57 x 63 x 0.02 cm Print . 22.4 x 24.8 x 0 inch

CHF 873

Design, Baby Cat, M.Chat

M.Chat

Design . 24 x 18 x 16 cm Design . 9.4 x 7.1 x 6.3 inch

CHF 2,720

Print, Golden Art - DJ, Sagrasse

Sagrasse

Print . 83 x 83 x 3 cm Print . 32.7 x 32.7 x 1.2 inch

CHF 1,312

Print, Les cerfs, Zao Wou-Ki

Zao Wou-Ki

Print . 38 x 56 cm Print . 15 x 22 inch

CHF 8,744

Design, Simba, Richard Orlinski

Richard Orlinski

Design . 17 x 13 x 8 cm Design . 6.7 x 5.1 x 3.1 inch

CHF 466

Print, Sappho, Marino Marini

Marino Marini

Print . 65 x 50 x 0.1 cm Print . 25.6 x 19.7 x 0 inch

CHF 1,360

Print, Stupor Mundi, Mimmo Paladino

Mimmo Paladino

Print . 103 x 175 x 1 cm Print . 40.6 x 68.9 x 0.4 inch

CHF 4,080

Print, Untitled, Leonor Fini

Leonor Fini

Print . 32 x 24 cm Print . 12.6 x 9.4 inch

CHF 583

Print, The King, Blek Le Rat

Blek Le Rat

Print . 23 x 31 x 0.1 cm Print . 9.1 x 12.2 x 0 inch

CHF 1,554