Wildlife art is a very old form of human expression. In contemporary times there is a vibrant market for it and in ancient times artists decorated the stone walls of their caves with depictions of wild animals.
These ancient paintings have survived for hundreds of years. Faint discolorations suggest that many have faded or chipped away, suggesting that early man began painting animals before history was written. Experts often theorize that the cave paintings had religious or spiritual significance for the people who had art galleries on the walls of their dwellings.
Their are differing cultural attitudes to the relationships between people and animals. The extraordinary political revolutions during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries attempted to penetrate even to this fundamental aspect of humanity and let to the extinction of wildlife. In the new China of the twenty-first century there is enthusiastic re-evaluation leading to fresh work in wildness that was so sadly decimated.
Wild animals still do survive in Africa despite the attentions of those who would slaughter them using advanced firepower. Ironically it is hunters who act as an inadvertent brake on destruction. Rich killers pay to kill for fun and this encourages game ranches to protect some wild animals until they can be shot by Europeans or Americans. Strangely, people who kill often have artistic instincts. They like to buy trophies, prints and realistic paintings to hang on their walls.
Entirely different attitudes motivate people who love wild animals for their beauty which is derived from the quality of wildness. This may be described as the fine gloss that distinguishes a wild thing from a domesticated creature. Some artists try to capture this, but others seek to penetrate to the soul of a creature such as a dog which retains its individuality despite centuries of domestication.
wildlife art has endured for much of human evolution, from stone age to contemporary times. A large number of wildlife artists exhibit their work in online galleries. There is a wide variation in taste and style. This suits the equally wide demand for a range of work.
These ancient paintings have survived for hundreds of years. Faint discolorations suggest that many have faded or chipped away, suggesting that early man began painting animals before history was written. Experts often theorize that the cave paintings had religious or spiritual significance for the people who had art galleries on the walls of their dwellings.
Their are differing cultural attitudes to the relationships between people and animals. The extraordinary political revolutions during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries attempted to penetrate even to this fundamental aspect of humanity and let to the extinction of wildlife. In the new China of the twenty-first century there is enthusiastic re-evaluation leading to fresh work in wildness that was so sadly decimated.
Wild animals still do survive in Africa despite the attentions of those who would slaughter them using advanced firepower. Ironically it is hunters who act as an inadvertent brake on destruction. Rich killers pay to kill for fun and this encourages game ranches to protect some wild animals until they can be shot by Europeans or Americans. Strangely, people who kill often have artistic instincts. They like to buy trophies, prints and realistic paintings to hang on their walls.
Entirely different attitudes motivate people who love wild animals for their beauty which is derived from the quality of wildness. This may be described as the fine gloss that distinguishes a wild thing from a domesticated creature. Some artists try to capture this, but others seek to penetrate to the soul of a creature such as a dog which retains its individuality despite centuries of domestication.
wildlife art has endured for much of human evolution, from stone age to contemporary times. A large number of wildlife artists exhibit their work in online galleries. There is a wide variation in taste and style. This suits the equally wide demand for a range of work.
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