{"id":809,"date":"2025-03-21T12:30:34","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T13:30:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/?p=809"},"modified":"2025-03-26T15:46:09","modified_gmt":"2025-03-26T15:46:09","slug":"little-beasts-is-a-first-of-its-kind-museum-collaboration-reveling-in-art-and-the-natural-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/21\/little-beasts-is-a-first-of-its-kind-museum-collaboration-reveling-in-art-and-the-natural-world\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Little Beasts\u2019 Is a First-of-Its-Kind Museum Collaboration Reveling in Art and the Natural World"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"‘Little<\/p>\n

During the 16th and 17th centuries, major developments in colonial expansion, trade, and scientific technology spurred a fervor for studying the natural world. Previously unknown or overlooked species were documented with unprecedented precision, and artists captured countless varieties of flora and fauna in paintings, prints, and encyclopedic volumes.<\/p>\n

Marking a first-of-its-kind collaboration between the National Gallery of Art and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Little Beasts: Art, Wonder, and the Natural World<\/em> pairs nearly 75 prints, drawings, and paintings with around 60 objects from the NMNH collection.<\/p>\n

\"an
Jan van Kessel the Elder, “Insects and a Sprig of Rosemary” (1653), oil on panel, 4 1\/2 x 5 1\/2 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“In major cities like Antwerp, artists such as Joris and Jacob Hoefnagel and Jan van Kessel created highly detailed drawings, prints, and paintings of these insects, animals, and other beestjes<\/em>, or ‘little beasts’ in Dutch,” says the National Gallery of Art. “Their works inspired generations of artists and naturalists, fueling the burgeoning science of natural history.”<\/p>\n

Natural history<\/a> has been a focus for scholars since ancient times, albeit early commentary was a bit more wide-ranging than its definition today. The largest single work to have survived from the Roman Empire is Pliny the Elder’s Naturalis Historia, <\/em>which consists of 37 books divided into 10 volumes and covers everything from astronomy to zoology and mineralogy to art.<\/p>\n

Studying the natural world in ancient and early modern times was predominantly a philosophical pursuit until a discernible change during the Renaissance. By the 16th century, attitudes had shifted. The humanist learning tradition, centered on literature and the arts, began to give way to more advanced explanations for natural objects, describing their types and transformations and grouping them into classes.<\/p>\n

Private collections played a fundamental role in founding many natural history archives. The popularity of Wunderkammers, or “rooms of wonder,” transformed a pastime of the wealthy into exercises in scholarly prestige. By the late 17th century, more rigorous and formalized classification systems emerged as the philosophical component waned.<\/p>\n

\"a
Wenceslaus Hollar, “Shell (Murex brandaris)” (c. 1645), etching on laid paper, plate: 3 3\/4 x 5 3\/8 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Throughout this time, artists like Albrecht D\u00fcrer, Clara Peeters, and Wenceslaus Hollar created works that responded to new discoveries. From biologically accurate renderings of shells and insects to playful compositions that employ animals and plants as decorative motifs, paintings and prints were often the only means by which the public could see newly discovered species.<\/p>\n

“Art\u202fand\u202fscience\u202fhave been closely aligned throughout the 175-year history of the Smithsonian,\u201d says Kirk Johnson, director of the NMNH. \u201cEven today, researchers at the National Museum of Natural History\u202fdepend on scientific illustrators to bring clarity and understanding to the specimens they study.”<\/p>\n

Little Beasts<\/em> opens on May 18 and continues through November 2 at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Find more on the museum’s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"a
Clara Peeters, “Still Life with Flowers Surrounded by Insects and a Snail” (c. 1610), oil on copper,
\noverall: 6 9\/16 x 5 5\/16 inches; framed: 10 x 9 x 1 1\/2 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
Robert Hooke, “Micrographia: or, Some physiological descriptions of minute bodies made by magnifying glasses. \/ With observations and inquiries thereupon” (1665), bound volume with etched illustrations height (foldout illustrations significantly larger): 12 3\/16 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
Jan van Kessel the Elder, “Artist’s Name in Insects and Reptiles [bottom center]” (1658), oil on copper, overall: 5 5\/8 x 7 1\/2 inches; framed: 9 7\/8 x 12 1\/8 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
Jan van Kessel the Elder, “Noah’s Family Assembling Animals Before the Ark” (c. 1660), oil on panel, overall: 25 3\/4 x 37 3\/16 inches; framed: 32 3\/4 x 44 1\/4 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a<\/figure>\n
\"a
An Elephant Beetle (Megasoma e. elephas) from the Department of Entomology collections at the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
Wenceslaus Hollar, “Two Butterflies, a Wasp, and a Moth” (1646), etching on laid paper, plate: 3 3\/16 x 4 3\/4 inches; sheet: 3 1\/4 x 4 13\/16 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member<\/a> today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article ‘Little Beasts’ Is a First-of-Its-Kind Museum Collaboration Reveling in Art and the Natural World<\/a> appeared first on Colossal<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During the 16th and 17th centuries, major developments in colonial expansion, trade, and scientific technology spurred a fervor for studying the natural world. Previously unknown or overlooked species were documented with unprecedented precision, and artists captured countless varieties of flora and fauna in paintings, prints, and encyclopedic volumes. Marking a first-of-its-kind collaboration between the National Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":811,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-809","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-art"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/809","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=809"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/809\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":823,"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/809\/revisions\/823"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=809"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=809"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thishabbo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=809"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}