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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Painting, Les Fauves, Karine Secret

Karine Secret

Painting - 80 x 80 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

£2,006

Sculpture, Buffle noir, William Byl

William Byl

Sculpture - 37.5 x 40 x 10 cm Sculpture - 14.8 x 15.7 x 3.9 inch

£1,774

Sculpture, Jagoanku, Kusbudiyanto

Kusbudiyanto

Sculpture - 75 x 70 x 30 cm Sculpture - 29.5 x 27.6 x 11.8 inch

£1,962

Painting, Eagle, Horss

Horss

Painting - 20.3 x 30.5 x 0.3 cm Painting - 8 x 12 x 0.1 inch

£713

Sculpture, Hippo, Olivia Moélo

Olivia Moélo

Sculpture - 33 x 5.5 x 15 cm Sculpture - 13 x 2.2 x 5.9 inch

£1,337

Fine Art Drawings, The Crow, Helen Uter

Helen Uter

Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 40 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 15.7 x 0 inch

£446

Painting, Hibou, Pablito Zago

Pablito Zago

Painting - 80 x 80 x 4 cm Painting - 31.5 x 31.5 x 1.6 inch

£1,605

Photography, Gecko, Stuart Redler

Stuart Redler

Photography - 40 x 50 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 19.7 x 0 inch

£1,050

Painting, Meditation Maze, Madstitch

Madstitch

Painting - 76 x 76 x 3 cm Painting - 29.9 x 29.9 x 1.2 inch

£6,152

Painting, Phoenix, Yandy Graffer

Yandy Graffer

Painting - 20 x 80 x 2 cm Painting - 7.9 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

£446

Painting, Bird, Lee Kaplan

Lee Kaplan

Painting - 100 x 50 x 2.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 19.7 x 1 inch

£3,722

Painting, Toro Fuego, Agnes B Davis

Agnes B Davis

Painting - 130 x 97 x 3 cm Painting - 51.2 x 38.2 x 1.2 inch

£3,567

Painting, Fusionnels, Amélie Béral

Amélie Béral

Painting - 150 x 120 x 3 cm Painting - 59.1 x 47.2 x 1.2 inch

£2,898

Painting, Fish, Joe Strasser

Joe Strasser

Painting - 65.41 x 32.39 x 2.54 cm Painting - 25.8 x 12.8 x 1 inch

£969 £775

Sculpture, Untitled, Martí Rom

Martí Rom

Sculpture - 32 x 50 x 15 cm Sculpture - 12.6 x 19.7 x 5.9 inch

£1,337

Painting, Les grives, Paul Mathey

Paul Mathey

Painting - 27 x 35 x 0.5 cm Painting - 10.6 x 13.8 x 0.2 inch

£853

Fine Art Drawings, Arfalla, Horor

Horor

Fine Art Drawings - 28 x 18 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11 x 7.1 x 0.1 inch

£535

Painting, Louis, Tessa Qwartz

Tessa Qwartz

Painting - 98 x 98 x 3 cm Painting - 38.6 x 38.6 x 1.2 inch

£3,789

Sculpture, Abstract Eagle, Theo Mackaay

Theo Mackaay

Sculpture - 90 x 80 x 60 cm Sculpture - 35.4 x 31.5 x 23.6 inch

£4,012

Painting, Inside on paper, Bright Toh

Bright Toh

Painting - 89.9 x 69.9 x 2.5 cm Painting - 35.4 x 27.5 x 1 inch

£1,783

Sculpture, Pez Plateado, Miquel Aparici

Miquel Aparici

Sculpture - 26 x 10 x 27 cm Sculpture - 10.2 x 3.9 x 10.6 inch

£1,132

Sculpture, Levrier 3C, Patrick Lang

Patrick Lang

Sculpture - 32 x 15 x 10 cm Sculpture - 12.6 x 5.9 x 3.9 inch

£5,617

Fine Art Drawings, Big Horns, Gouzy

Gouzy

Fine Art Drawings - 39 x 29 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.4 x 11.4 x 0.4 inch

£490

Fine Art Drawings, Dog anatomy, Lucio Forte

Lucio Forte

Fine Art Drawings - 24 x 18 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9.4 x 7.1 x 0 inch

£80

Painting, Eau de mare, Zo

Zo

Painting - 25 x 25 x 5 cm Painting - 9.8 x 9.8 x 2 inch

£1,266

Print, Relinquished, Roger Ballen

Roger Ballen

Print - 90 x 90 x 0.2 cm Print - 35.4 x 35.4 x 0.1 inch

£12,483

Painting, Blue Sky, Mubaraq Yusuf

Mubaraq Yusuf

Painting - 101.6 x 76.2 x 2.5 cm Painting - 40 x 30 x 1 inch

£2,093

Fine Art Drawings, Untitled, Albert Debois

Albert Debois

Fine Art Drawings - 51 x 36 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 20.1 x 14.2 x 0 inch

£499

Fine Art Drawings, Les vaches, Jean Dubuffet

Jean Dubuffet

Fine Art Drawings - 24.5 x 32 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9.6 x 12.6 inch

£40,123

Sculpture, Land Loha totem, Loha

Loha

Sculpture - 15 x 20 x 6 cm Sculpture - 5.9 x 7.9 x 2.4 inch

£89

Fine Art Drawings, Zebra, Farid Saâdi

Farid Saâdi

Fine Art Drawings - 30 x 40 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.8 x 15.7 x 0.4 inch

£446

Fine Art Drawings, Jim, Parvati

Jim

Parvati

Fine Art Drawings - 31 x 31 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.2 x 12.2 x 0.4 inch

£535

Fine Art Drawings, Sans titre, Salim Karami

Salim Karami

Fine Art Drawings - 12 x 18 cm Fine Art Drawings - 4.7 x 7.1 inch

£624

Painting, Rage, Hristo Gaberov

Hristo Gaberov

Painting - 80 x 65 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 25.6 x 0.8 inch

£2,229

Sculpture, Cormoran, Alain Derda

Alain Derda

Sculpture - 85 x 30 x 50 cm Sculpture - 33.5 x 11.8 x 19.7 inch

£1,783

Sculpture, Bronze George, Ben Koracevic

Ben Koracevic

Sculpture - 65 x 39 x 31 cm Sculpture - 25.6 x 15.4 x 12.2 inch

£12,929

Painting, Salty Extract, Sheep Chen

Sheep Chen

Painting - 120 x 85 x 3 cm Painting - 47.2 x 33.5 x 1.2 inch

£3,567

Sculpture, Snake une pivoine, StephD

StephD

Sculpture - 80 x 20 x 4 cm Sculpture - 31.5 x 7.9 x 1.6 inch

£580

Painting, Growl, Satr

Satr

Painting - 30 x 30 x 4 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 1.6 inch

£2,497

Sculpture, Monkey, Denko

Denko

Sculpture - 20 x 10 x 0.7 cm Sculpture - 7.9 x 3.9 x 0.3 inch

£526

Painting, African bee, Saviour Juma

Saviour Juma

Painting - 30 x 30 x 1 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch

£134 £120

Fine Art Drawings, Milka fish, SP

SP

Fine Art Drawings - 30 x 90 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.8 x 35.4 x 0.4 inch

£646

Fine Art Drawings, Le messager, Agathe David

Agathe David

Fine Art Drawings - 52 x 42 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 20.5 x 16.5 x 0.4 inch

£535

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