Lebende Tiere und inszenierte Natur: Zeichnung und Fotografie in der populären Zoologie zwischen 1860 und 1910

Abstract

It is the central thesis of this paper that the “biological perspective” (Lynn Nyhart) typical for Germany, with its interest in living animals, not only influenced natural history practices in many ways during the second half of the 19th century, rather also shaped the illustrations of popular zoology publications, as for example those in Brehms Thierleben. The illustrators of this period preferred to use live animals as models, which they studied in zoos. These animals were often depicted in their “natural” habitats. Since the illustrators knew only very little about these habitats, they had to be imagined. Another fashionable genre within popular zoology was the portrayal of animals fighting, which attracted attention because of their drama. The first wildlife photographers oriented themselves on the zoological illustrations and, with the aid of manipulation, staging and retouching, gave their photographs the impression of natural surroundings and drama. Yet both the illustrators and the photographers emphasized their truth to nature and – based on this – the scientific value of their pictures. In so doing, they developed a “biological” kind of wildlife photography, which, after the turn of the 19th century, allowed dedicated amateurs to create a popular zoological oeuvre that was well received by broad audiences.