Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 15h

#TextileTuesday:
Firefighter's Coat (hikeshi-banten) with #Hawk and Waves
Japan, early to mid-20th c.
Cotton, plant dyes
On display at BMA (2024.374)
“The firefighter who chose this design…valued the protective power of water as well as the hawk's strength and keen vision.”
#BirdsInArt #JapaneseArt

photo of the fireman’s coat (design: brown hawk flying over blue wave) hanging on display at museum

photo of the gallery label:

“Unidentified Artists)
Firefighter's Coat (hikeshi-banten) with Hawk and Waves
early to mid-20th century
Japan
Cotton, plant dyes
This handmade firefighter's coat, made of layers of cotton stitched securely together, is displayed inside-out to reveal a hawk soaring above turbulent waves. Worn during a fire with its undecorated exterior facing out, the coat was saturated with water to protect the firefighter from flames and debris. Rather than using water to put out fires, late 19th- and early 20th-century Japanese firefighters demolished structures near a fire to prevent it from spreading. After extinguishing a fire, the heroic men turned their coats to display the decorated insides.
The firefighter who chose this design for his coat valued the protective power of water as well as the hawk's strength and keen vision.
Anonymous Gift, BMA 2024.374”

1 14 28

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 15h

#TwoForTuesday :
Double Chambered Bottle
Representing a Spondylus #Shell and Strombus Shell
Moche culture, North coast Peru, 1st-7th c.
Earthenware, slip
On display at Baltimore Museum of Art (2005.31)
#IndigenousArt #AndeanArt #PeruvianArt #Mollusks

photo of the pottery piece on display at museum
double chambered & single spouted (upside down Y shape) vessel; left half as a light brown strombus shell with spout half red-brown and right half as a dark brown spondylus shell with spout half light brown; molded and incised details

photo of the gallery label:

“Unidentified Moche
Artist
Double Chambered Bottle
Representing a Spondylus Shell and Strombus Shell lst-7th century
North coast, Peru Earthenware, slip
Gift of the Austen-Stokes Ancient Americas
Foundation, Upper Nyack, New York, BMA 2005.31”

3 12

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 1d

Echinus, Pl. 136 in Tableau Encyclopédique et Méthodique des Trois Règnes de la Nature, T.2 (Paris, 1797). Hand-colored plate.
#SeaUrchins #Echinoderms #Invertebrates #SciArt
www.flickr.com/photos/tbcav...

vintage hand-colored zoological plate in landscape orientation, illustration of 8 different sea urchin specimens

9 37

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 1d

#MonochromeMonday :
Huang Yongyu 黄永玉 (Tujia; China, 1924-2023)
Black Swine, 1994
Ink on paper, hanging scroll
#ChineseArt
www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/...

Illustration of a black tusked boar with Chinese text above
“signed HUANG YONGYU, dated jia xu, 1994, the twelfth lunar month, inscribed, with a dedication to Shen Weichuang, and five seals of the artist”

41 130

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 1d

#NationalBadgerDay:
#ItalianRenaissance artist Il Sodoma (b. Giovanni Antonio Bazzi, 1477-1549) stuck a self portrait with his pet #badgers into his Stories of St. Benedict fresco cycle! 😂
Scene 3: Benedict Repairs a Broken Colander Through Prayer (Monte Oliveto Maggiore, Tuscany, 1505-8)

full view of the fresco panel with the artist’s self-portrait inserted into scene

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Stories_of_Saint_Benedict_in_Monte_Oliveto_Maggiore_by_Sodoma

Detail of the artist’s self portrait with his two pet badgers at his feet (one in front wearing a red collar)

2 3 16

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 1d

For #NationalBadgerDay :
Lloyd Kakepetum (Keewaywin First Nation, b.1958)
#Badger, 1979
Acrylic on canvas, 24 x 20 in. (61 x 50.8 cm)
#FirstNationsArt #IndigenousArt #WoodlandsArt

www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/...

painting in portrait orientation, illustration of a standing American Badger, brown / orange color palette, modern Woodlands School style

14 58

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 1d

Resharing for #NationalBadgerDay

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · Jan 14

#TwoForTuesday :
Delia Portsmouth (b.c.1916-?)
The #Badgers, 1970
Oil on board, H 59.5 x W 89.7 cm
Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru | The National Library of Wales PB08169/9 via Art UK artuk.org/discover/art...
#WomenArtists

1 23

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 1d

Resharing for #NationalBadgerDay

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · Oct 7

For a belated #NationalBadgerDay:
medieval bestiary badger brigade! bestiary.ca/beasts/beast...
1 Harley MS 4751 f. 30r (late 12th-early 13th c.) www.bl.uk/manuscripts/...
2 MS Bodley 764 f. 50v (2nd qtr. 13th c.) digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/e6ad...

“Badgers digging, using one of them as a wheelbarrow”
“Badgers work together to dig their holes in the mountains. One will lie down at the entrance to the hole, holding a stick in its mouth, while the others pile earth on its belly. Two badgers take hold of the stick with their mouths and drag the loaded badger away.”

“Badger being used as a wheelbar by diggers”
“Badgers work together to dig their holes in the mountains. One will lie down at the entrance to the hole, holding a stick in its mouth, while the others pile earth on its belly. Two badgers take hold of the stick with their mouths and drag the loaded badger away.”

1 2 14

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 2d

For #ManuscriptMonday:
#Mammals & #birds (plus some bonus #insects), fols. 43r & 208r from Horae (Cambrai) [Heures de Boussu], France, 1490-95
Gallican BnF / Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal Ms-1185 réserve
gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/b...

fol. 43r
digitized page from an illuminated manuscript, text box surrounded by illustrations of various mammals (15 total) against gold background

fol. 208r
digitized page from an illuminated manuscript, text box surrounded by illustrations of various birds (19 total) with 4 flies and 2 butterflies scattered in between against gold background

9 26

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 2d

1. #Antelope Clip, 1972
Yellow gold, platinum, sapphire, enamel, diamonds
Van Cleef & Arpels Collection
2. Drawing of Antelope Clip, c.1972
Van Cleef & Arpels Archives
On display at “An Ode to Nature by Van Cleef & Arpels" show, Galerie du Patrimoine, Paris
www.vancleefarpels.com/en/the-maiso...

official photo of the Antelope Clip, front view in pale green background
bejeweled clip in the form of a recumbent antelope

digitized image of the original design for the Antelope Clip, color drawing centered on off-white paper

2 20

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 2d

“Every Year This Wisconsin Museum Hosts the Best Modern Bird Art in the World”
The annual “Birds in Art” show at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum celebrates its 50th anniversary this year with the biggest, most impressive exhibition yet:
www.audubon.org/magazine/eve...

Every Year This Wisconsin Museum Hosts the Best Modern Bird Art in the World

The annual “Birds in Art” show at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum celebrates its 50th anniversary this year with the biggest, most impressive exhibition yet. Take a behind-the-scenes tour...

www.audubon.org

1 3 16

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 2d

#Snails for a slow Sunday 🐌…
Andy Warhol (USA, 1928-1987)
So Slow, 1950s
Watercolor & ink drawing on paper
The Warhol Museum
www.instagram.com/p/DKhLDjhsX_2/
(© The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc.)

Drawing depicting six pairs of red snails and green leaves arranged in two rows of three, with an orange butterfly and the words "so slow" at the top

8 22

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 2d

Plate IX Animal Moss (Flustra cormata)
from Alfred Moquin-Tandon’s Le monde de la mer (The World of the Sea), 1866 (English ed. 1869)
www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/47911#p...
[Yes, they’re animals! Phylum Bryozoa]

book plate in portrait orientation, illustration of a colony of Bryozoans with grey vase-shaped bodies and yellow tentacle crowns against black background, with caption: “ANIMAL MOSS (Flustra cormata)”

1 11 35

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 3d

Brooch, USA, early 1940s
Designed by Marion Weeber Welsh (USA, 1905–2000)
Plastic, #coral, thread, metal; 8h x 6.5w x 2.2d cm (3 1/8 x 2 9/16 x 7/8 in.)
Cooper Hewitt 2006-2-8
collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/1869...
#Poodle #DogsInArt #WomenArtists

official museum photo of the object, front view on white background
red brooch in the form of a poodle, with plastic body and coral pieces used for the fur

3 18

Reposted by Art History Animalia

Old English Wordhord @oewordhord.bsky.social · 9d

fǣle, adj: faithful, true, dear, good. (FAE-luh / ˈfæː-lə)
Image: The turtledove always remains faithful to its mate; Aberdeen Bestiary; England, c. 1200; @aberdeenunilib.bsky.social MS 24, f. 32r.
#OldEnglish #WOTD

Medieval manuscript illustration of two turtledoves standing on some branches facing one other.

13 57

Reposted by Art History Animalia

Old English Wordhord @oewordhord.bsky.social · 6d

a-sēon, str.v: to look at or upon, set eyes on (something). (ah-SAY-on / a-ˈseːɔn)
Image: Peterborough Bestiary; England (Peterborough), c. 1300-1310; @parkerlibcccc.bsky.social MS 53, f. 197v.
#OldEnglish #WOTD

Medieval manuscript image of a grey cat curiously gazing down its nose, giving it a cross-eyed appearance.

15 56

Reposted by Art History Animalia

Dr Jill Whitelock @jillwhitelock.bsky.social · 4d

Interesting to find some nature printed butterflies @theul.bsky.social yesterday (‘lepidochromes’). The butterflies were pressed on prepared paper, which was folded, allowing the scales to transfer to create mirror images of both sides of the insects’ wings. 1/2 #enthist @camglamresearch.bsky.social

Montage showing nature printed butterflies in a 1920s notebook: a Peacock, Red admiral and Small tortoiseshell.

1 7 31

Reposted by Art History Animalia

Malcolm Stoneman @malcolmstoneman.bsky.social · 3d

"Swans on Lake Annecy" - 1890

Designer - Albert Besnard
Master glassmaker - Henri Carot

From the vestibule of the mansion of Henry Lerolle (painter), 20 avenue Duquesne, Paris.

Now @museeorsay.bsky.social #Paris

#StainedGlassSunday

White & black swans amongst the reeds & rushes of the lake.

2 40 170

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 3d

#Caturday 🐱:
Dahlov Ipcar (USA, 1917-2017)
Encounter, 1967
Oil on canvas, 23 1/2" x 19 1/2"
live.thomastonauction.com/auction-lot/...
#CatsInArt #WomenArtists

1 19 100

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · 3d

For the first #Baturday of #BatAppreciationMonth 🦇:
Cameo Glass #Bat Vase by Daum Frères, France, c.1910
H 9¾ in. (24.8 cm)
www.christies.com/lot/a-daum-f...
#ArtNouveau

official auction photo, front view on white background
Vase, cameo glass translucent browns and yellows, with a trio of flying bats in dark brown silhouette

1 16 47

Reposted by Art History Animalia

NorCal Lynne 🍂 @norcal-lynne.bsky.social · 3d

The Cats: Tsching, Batzar and Blanc-Blanc.
Drawing by Théophile Alexandre Steinlen (1859-1923). National Gallery of Art. #Caturday #SciArt #Art

A charcoal drawing of three cats sleeping together in one big ball of cats.

10 60

Reposted by Art History Animalia

Chapps @chapps.bsky.social · 4d

On this lovely weekend day, with my spine having given out (off to emergency care, I think - bleh), I want to be like this netsuke cat from Japan, without a care in the world. So here he is for #caturday.

ca. 1800-1850. #V&A
📸 me

The netsuke is a toggle. Japanese men used netsuke to suspend various pouches and containers from their sashes by a silk cord. Netsuke had to be small and not too heavy, yet bulky enough to do the job. They needed to be compact with no sharp protruding edges, yet also strong and hard-wearing. Above all, they had to have the means for attaching a cord. Netsuke were made in a variety of forms, the most widely appreciated being the <i>katabori</i> (shape carving), a three-dimensional carving, such as this one in the form of a cat dozing on an oval disc, with its tail curled over the back part of its body.

Cats were introduced into Japan in the late 9th century, and quickly became a favorite part of their culture, right into the modern era with pop culture phenomena like Hello Kitty and cat cafés.

Japan, ca. 1800-1850, carved and stained ivory.

V&A Museum (A.65-1915)

9 16 80

Reposted by Art History Animalia

Ennius @enniusredloeb.bsky.social · 4d

What a week!

Cambridge University Library, MS Kk.4.25; Bestiary; c.1230 CE; England; f.89r @camdiglib.bsky.social

2 14 55

Reposted by Art History Animalia

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · Oct 4

Happy #WorldAnimalDay!
Suzuki Kiitsu (1796-1858)
One Hundred Birds and One Hundred Animals
Japan, Edo period, 1843
pair of hanging scrolls; ink, color, & gold pigment on silk
From “The Life of Animals in Japanese Art” exhibition at National Gallery of Art DC (2019)
#JapaneseArt #AnimalsInArt

photo of both scrolls hanging together on display

photo of the 100 animals hanging scroll on display

photo of the 100 birds hanging scroll on display

gallery sign:
“181
SUZUKI KITSU
1796 - 1858
One Hundred Birds and One Hundred Animals
Edo period, 1843
pair of hanging scrolls; ink, color, and gold pigment on silk Catherine and Thomas H. Edson Collection
Native birds and animals appear alongside an elephant, a camel, and other exotic species. A mythical phoenix perches on the mountain in the scroll at right, while a kirin flies through clouds in the one at left. A sacred animal with the horns of a dragon and the legs of a deer, the kirin is said to materialize when saints or benevolent rulers appear. With real and fantastic creatures coexisting in harmony amid blossoming plants from all four seasons, these scrolls suggest a Buddhist paradise.”

3 14

Reposted by Art History Animalia

Art History Animalia @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social · Oct 4

Happy #WorldAnimalDay! How many different animals can you spot in this fabric menagerie?
Sarong (Kain Lepas), mid-late 19th c.
Javanese (Indonesia, Java, Pekalongan)
Cotton, paint
44 x 84 in. (111.76 x 213.36 cm)
The Met 30.88.2:
www.metmuseum.org/art/collecti...
#SEAsianArt #AnimalsInArt

official museum photo of the sarong laid flat open on light grey background

1 2 14