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Tom Gurney BSc (Hons) is an art history expert with over 20 years experience
Published on June 19, 2020 / Updated on October 14, 2023
Email: tomgurney1@gmail.com / Phone: +44 7429 011000

Art often provided an educational purpose in past centuries, capturing exotic creatures that most would be unable to see in person

The combination of a lack of leisure time for most as well as far less spreading of knowledge between cultures and countries ensured that for some art was the best way to learn about animals, birds and insects that were not immediately in their vicinity.

Albrecht Durer provided the same role with his charming portraits of crustaceans, as shown in the crab found here. He was genuinely fascinated by the textures and sharp limbs of these creatures who he may have first come across during his travels abroad.

An alternative method to art was to stuff dead animals and display them in museums. This was also very popular during past centuries but over time these items would often decay, certainly faster than the drawings or paintings of Albrecht Durer.

The full array of Durer's work with all of these different creatures underlines his love of nature in general. He would also produce multiple watercolour paintings of beautiful flowers and would find this easier to source and depict.

Albrecht Durer was intrigued by crustaceans and found it a challenge to accurately depict their rough textures. His alternative drawing, Lobster, displays an alternative artistic approach. He would also cover insects as well which provided similar examinations of his technical qualities.