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.

Recommended by Artsper

The Kiss

Manuel Santelices

Painting . 20.3 x 20.3 x 2.5 cm Painting . 8 x 8 x 1 inch

€1,023

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Marc Jacobs fall 2020

Manuel Santelices

Painting . 30.5 x 22.9 x 0.3 cm Painting . 12 x 9 x 0.1 inch

€930

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Artist Tracey Emin Working

Manuel Santelices

Fine Art Drawings . 38.1 x 38.1 x 0.3 cm Fine Art Drawings . 15 x 15 x 0.1 inch

€837

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Marc Jacobs pink

Manuel Santelices

Painting . 40.6 x 30.5 x 2.5 cm Painting . 16 x 12 x 1 inch

€1,023

Recommended by Artsper

Print - deux Carpes Koï -III

Noël Granger

Print . 21 x 15 x 0.12 cm Print . 8.3 x 5.9 x 0 inch

€50

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A Touch of Autumn: Large Abstract Acrylic Landscape Artwork in Sage Green, Terracotta, and Pale Blue for Modern Living Room Decor

Sunset #3: Large Abstract Red Artwork on Canvas, Moody Crimson and Burgundy Expressionist Wall Art for Modern Interior Decor

Kateryna Malomuzh

Painting . 140 x 120 x 0.1 cm Painting . 55.1 x 47.2 x 0 inch

€1,488

Morning Before the Heat: Large Abstract Canvas Artwork in Cool Blue, Fresh Green, and Luminous Yellow for Modern Organic Interiors

Recommended by Artsper

Portrait 1

Christophe Hohler

Painting . 30 x 30 x 8 cm Painting . 11.8 x 11.8 x 3.1 inch

€2,000

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lueur rouge, lithographie originale

Christophe Hohler

Print . 76 x 56 x 0.05 cm Print . 29.9 x 22 x 0 inch

€660

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lithographie originale "Il se passe quelque chose dans le ciel"

Christophe Hohler

Print . 76 x 56 x 1 cm Print . 29.9 x 22 x 0.4 inch

€740

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Vanité 1, lithographie originale

Christophe Hohler

Print . 76 x 28 x 1 cm Print . 29.9 x 11 x 0.4 inch

€660

Recommended by Artsper

Heavens Apart: Surreal Vogue Magazine Collage on Linen Canvas with Angel Wings, Birds, and Jewels in Muted Sage Green, Silver, and Cream

Hooked on You – Blue Female Underwater Portrait with Fish : Original Monochromatic Blue Oil Artwork of Submerged Woman, Surreal Female Figure and Symbolic Aquatic

Music to My Ears – Blue Female Underwater Portrait with Seashell : Monochrome Blue Oil Artwork on Canvas Close-Up Woman Face and Shell Earring Modern Coastal Wall Art

Fish Eye View – Blue Underwater Lights and Shadows Portrait : Original Monochromatic Blue Surreal Oil Artwork of Female Eye and Ocean Silhouette Fish for Modern Home Decor

Recommended by Artsper

Untitled 202

Tarek Butayhi

Fine Art Drawings . 42 x 30 cm Fine Art Drawings . 16.5 x 11.8 inch

€800

Recommended by Artsper

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Animal