Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519). Leonard’s urge to understand anatomy and the
phenomena of nature led him to draw many animal studies for his paintings and
sculptures. The following show some drawings from
the royal collection.
Source: www.royalcollection.org.uk
Study of cats and other animals c1513
Study of horse and rider c 1480
Albrecht Durer (1471-1528). Born in Nuremburg, Germany, Durer was one of few artists living at that time to view animals as a subject worthy of attention. Durer was fascinated by nature and believed the study of the natural world could reveal the fundamental truths he was seeking to discover through his art. Durer shared the fascination of explorers and travellers who at the beginning of the 16th century were returning from distant lands with information of new species. Though never having seen a real rhinocreous he based the drawing below on a sketch by an unknown artist from Lisbon. He enhanced the public mythology about such a creature by drawing folds of skin like plates of armour and adding an extra horn on its back. This exagerated image was generally accepted as an accurate representation until around the middle of the 18th Century.
Rhinoceros 1515 pen and ink
I think Renaissance masters such as Leonardo and Durer saw the study and drawing of animals, just as with other subjects, as a means of learning about nature. Their drawings were true studies in every sense of the word, they would draw to learn - about anatomy and movement and looking at the example of Durer's Rhinocerous, to learn about the world outside their own experience. Their hunger for knowledge of the world around them seemed to drive their art. Thier art in turn seemed to give them a way of learning and discovery.
