The Craft

Depicting an Infernal Waltz

There are about 8.7 million species of animal on the planet and countless artistic methods and mediums to celebrate each of them. From drawing to painting to sculpting and many, many more--it’s a jungle out there!

Aaron Blaise

And when it comes to animals, animator Aaron Blaise--who has worked on many Disney films, including Beauty & The Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King--believes that art should come from observation in the real world.

“...it will always make you a better artist to observe the real thing rather than to rely solely on digital reference and books,” Blaise said.

While Blaise encourages artists to go out and into nature for inspiration, he does see value in complementing any time spent sketching the animals in front of you with photography.

“As great as Google and other tools are, there is nothing like being able to jump into your personal photograph library and see tons of high-res images of animals that you personally shot out in the field,” Blaise said. “This is something that will be 100% unique to you and your art. Personally, I’ve set a goal for myself to eventually have all of my art 100% based on my own photography reference. While this isn’t always possible I can tell you from experience that there is a very special feeling you will get when you complete a work of art knowing that 100% of its elements were from your own hands.”

When you find something in art that you can relate to, the experience can be a powerful one. And according to Blaise, the more you work with animals in your art, the more commonalities you’ll find.

“...if you study the comparative anatomy of animals or even humans you will quickly uncover that we all have basically the same bones and muscle groups. Mammals, birds, reptiles, et al., all have skulls, neck bones, rib cages, pelvises, leg bones, and more,” Blaise said. “It’s just where they are positioned and how they are proportioned that makes each animal unique.” ¹

Animal comparison study by Aaron Blaise

Louise Bourgeois

Sculptor Louise Bourgeois, who was the first woman to have a retrospective of her work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, grew up around animals and found an artistic commonality with them that went beyond the physical. “Identification—the power of identification is very strong,” Bourgeois said. “I lend the animal, I project the animal and shape my feelings.”

Her search for things shared between humans and animals guided what is perhaps her most famous sculpture, Maman. ² Measuring approximately 30 feet high and 33 feet wide, Maman is made of bronze, stainless steel, and marble, and depicts a spider carrying eggs. But that is only what it looks like. For Bourgeois, it represents something more.

Maman by Louise Bourgeois

“The Spider is an ode to my mother,” Bourgeois said. “She was my best friend. Like a spider, my mother was a weaver. My family was in the business of tapestry restoration, and my mother was in charge of the workshop. Like spiders, my mother was very clever. Spiders are friendly presences that eat mosquitoes. We know that mosquitoes spread diseases and are therefore unwanted. So, spiders are helpful and protective, just like my mother.” ³

Rosa Bonheur

Often considered the 19th century’s most well-known female painter, Rosa Bonheur took a very hands-on, scientific approach to creating the animals featured in her art. Not only did Bonheur visit abattoirs to study the anatomy of animals, she dissected them at the National Veterinary Institute in Paris. ⁴

Reflecting the dedication of her efforts to understand what she created, Bonheur once said,

“Art is a tyrant. It demands heart, brain, soul, body. The entireness of the votary. Nothing less will win its highest favor.”

Bonheur’s The Horse Fair is her most famous painting. ⁶ Having taken her four years to complete, the painting measures eight feet by sixteen feet and depicts horses being sold in Paris. And while it may be considered a Realist work, Bonheur’s work was driven by more than just scientific accuracy. Of The Horse Fair, she said,

“My dream is to show the fire which comes out of the horses' nostrils; the dust which rises from their hooves. I want this to be an infernal waltz.” ⁸

The Horse Fair, Rosa Bonheur, 1852-55

¹ https://www.cartoonbrew.com/educational/aaron-blaise-explains-essentials- animal-drawing-exclusive-video-151911.html² https://lb.moma.org/themes/animals-insects³ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maman_(sculpture)⁴ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_Bonheur⁵ https://quotefancy.com/quote/1774572/Rosa-Bonheur-Art-is-a-tyrant-It-demands-heart-brain- soul-body-The-entireness-of-the⁶ https://www.wikiart.org/en/rosa-bonheur/the-horse-fair-1855-1⁷ https://www.azquotes.com/quote/1172325⁸ https://www.azquotes.com/quote/1172325

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