Stripped Bare: The Art of Animal Anatomy

by David Bainbridge

A lavishly illustrated compendium of the art and history of animal anatomy from antiquity to today

For more than two thousand years, comparative anatomy―the study of anatomical variation among different animal species―has been used to make arguments in natural philosophy, reinforce religious dogma, and remind us of our own mortality. This stunningly illustrated compendium traces the intertwined intellectual and artistic histories of comparative anatomy from antiquity to today.

Stripped Bare brings together some of the most arresting images ever produced, from the earliest studies of animal form to the technicolor art of computer-generated anatomies. David Bainbridge draws on representative illustrations from different eras to discuss the philosophical, scientific, and artistic milieus from which they emerged. He vividly describes the unique aesthetics of each phase of anatomical endeavor, providing new insights into the exquisite anatomical drawings of Leonardo and Albrecht Dürer in the era before printing, Jean Héroard’s cutting and cataloging of the horse during the age of Louis XIII, the exotic pictorial menageries of the Comte de Buffon in the eighteenth century, anatomical illustrations from Charles Darwin’s voyages, the lavish symmetries of Ernst Haeckel’s prints, and much, much more.

Featuring a wealth of breathtaking color illustrations throughout, Stripped Bare is a panoramic tour of the intricacies of vertebrate life as well as an expansive history of the peculiar and beautiful ways humans have attempted to study and understand the natural world.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Art, Animals, Nature

256 pages, Hardcover

Published October 9, 2018

Reviews

[Julie Stielstra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Medical illustration, animals, and astonishing art, all beautifully and enthusiastically presented by a professor of veterinary anatomy at Cambridge University... I was hooked in an instant. In his perfectly lovely, accessible book, David Bainbridge looks at the history of veterinary "illustration" with the eye of both a scientist and an artist. Who wouldn't want to learn animal anatomy from a professor who uses Durer's winsome greyhound drawing as a model (https://www.rct.uk/collection/912177/...)? From ancient stone models of lamb livers (to describe the meanings of entrail readings known as hepatoscopy), a highly stylized 15th century Islamic diagram of a "spatchcocked" horse, through Leonardo's brilliant sketches and Durer's sweet ox muzzle, to breathtakingly delicate renderings of a rattlesnake's interior and paintings of ocular structures that could have been done by Klee or Kandinsky, this is anatomy as we don't normally think about it. Bainbridge's commentary is unfailingly illuminating, witty, and knowledgeable, sprinkled with practical asides. He notes, in relation to a careful drawing of the muscles of a horse's head, that the muscles around the eye are "extravagantly developed... even a strong man cannot open a horse's eye if it does not wish him to." Spoken like a man who has tried, but who will absolutely open your eyes to the wonders of these works of art.

[Marissa Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It has a winning combination of art, history, discovery, animal anatomy, and the history of modern biology. The narrative is informative and interesting to read. It is a book that I will enjoy looking at again and again.

I have three minor critiques. First, I wish there was a timeline of sorts that compared the featured works of art/artists to the evolution of animal anatomy and physiology. I had difficulty seeing the big picture at times. Another criticism is that I wish the featured works of art said what medium was being used. The last thing I would add would be a "recommended reading" list for curious individuals like myself.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an eclectic collection of drawings and photography of animal anatomy ranging from Leonardo da Vinci and Albrecht Durer to Richard Owen and Edweard Muybridge, among others.
I am fascinated with the drawings of the first two and Muybridge’s photographic studies of animals in motion, and would have been happy with a whole book on them.
Much of this book details skeletons, which is interesting from the point of view of comparisons.
Skeletons are also very helpful to the artist who is trying to get the proportions of an animal to look correct.
There is also a whole chapter devoted to the anatomy of horses (not so common as they used to be in everyday life and art).
And there are other drawings of animals you might not ever see in anatomy books like Leclerc’s majestic skeleton of a stag complete with large antlers (which are of course seasonal, being shed and regrown every year).
What I did not find so interesting were the comparisons of the internal organs of snakes, sharks, an echidna, and various reptiles and amphibians, the retina of an eye, stages in the growth of “granule cell dendrites” (whatever they are — no explanation given) and other tissues or organs which I have no interest in drawing or even seeing.

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This richly illustrated text is a wonderful compilation of various types of art about animal anatomy. I stumbled across this text as a recent acquisition at the local public library. With just a quick thumb through I saw Leonardo, Dürer, and Balla next to Medieval bestiaries and 20th-century tractographs, and was hooked. The read is nicely spaced, sectioned and organized. Bainbridge weaves an easy to follow narrative about the development of artistic/scientific representations of vertebrates. There is just enough jargon to make you want to look up some items, but not too much to put off the non-initiate.

[Bill Ryerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read, showcasing not only some incredible art, but also providing context to the art and artists. The historical context really helps the reader understand why the artists chose the subjects they did and how they presented them.

[Cristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It’s like a cabinet of curiosities in paper form.