Animal Art

Animal art is one of the most ancient of all. In fact, animals represent the vast majority of subjects found in drawings and paintings dating back to prehistory found in various places across the globe. Some advance that, not only endowed with aesthetic character, these representations were probably used for mysterious rites connected with hunting.

Based on animal representation, therefore essentially figurative, animal art can express itself through various media: painting, sculpture, drawing, etc. It can be sometimes tinged with symbolism or be a faithful reproduction of reality in great detail.

Before the invention of photography, drawing and painting with encyclopedic skill proved to be, moreover, highly practical for illustrating written works dealing with animal or vegetable species. Even earlier on, during the Middle Ages, animal representations were to be found in bestiaries (inventories of real or imaginary creatures).