Customer Reviews

Art Forms in Nature: The Prints of Ernst Haeckel (Monographs)

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Length:: 3:36 Mins

Video shows the size of the book, flipping through a lot of the plates and rambling.

The illustrations are awesome, there's a universe of beautiful complex lifeforms that are too small for us to see. The illustrations are all in color, unlike other versions of Ernst Haeckel's prints, and it also has lots of text in the front about Ernst Haeckel's work, an autobiographic timeline in the back etc... Unbelievable art

This is such a lovely book, I just HAD to let all you readers know. I didn't know anything about Haeckel (never even heard of the man.....), when I ordered this book. I just loved his drawing of the Medusa on the cover, and couldn't resist buying it, and boy, am I glad that I did..... There is such a quiet beauty in these plates.

The book is also published by Dover (see my review there), without any accompanying text (apart from a short publishers's note), and with all the plates printed in black and white.

In this book, many of the plates are printed 'in color' (either different hues of one color, or a color scheme based on two colors). The book also has a highly informative article on Haeckel and his times, and on those that were influenced by him.

I find it very hard to explain what exactly makes these plates so wonderfully beautiful. It is partly the symmetry of their composition, and the way in which they render the beauty of nature. The article in the book itself describes it very well:

"What is it that Haeckel depicts here that is so beautiful? It is the beauty of ornament. The forms illustrated in these pages seem to fit seamlessly into the repertoire of Art Nouveau forms. [........] Haeckel's approach did not determine Art Nouveau, instead Art Nouveau's approach determined Haeckel's. What ensued was a symbiosis between decorative sketches and descriptive observations of nature [...]."

If you are looking for a book on Haeckel and his plates, get this one!

Just recieved this book today amongst about 12 other art books and I can't yet put it down. Made my best friend cry the images are so beautiful. Many unique plates to study, each a stunning masterpiece.

This a a lovely book, though a bit on the lean side. It's a good sampler of Haeckel's work, the printing is well done with thick pages and a non gloss finish. Great for the coffee table or reference.

I'm not kidding when I say this book has changed my life. Visually stunning, unimaginably beautiful.

...As others have reviewed the images, this review is about the physical characteristics.
...The quality, in the Prestel edition, is good enough for framing if you want to take the book apart. It is printed in Germany on acid free paper, of decent weight, unlike the Dover edition,which has no color plates.

Amazing images of pollen spores, bats' faces, moths, diatoms, and more - drawn by the master. Ernst Haeckel's prints were a huge influence in the Art Nouveau movement, and the introduction to the book discusses that. Just absolutely brilliant - a surreal and gorgeous look at nature at every scale.

Ernst Haeckel's illustrations are the epitome of 19th century scientific drawing. The drawings are meticulously detailed and show of the symmetry and geometry of natural forms. The plates of large organisms such as reptiles have a quaint, old-fashioned look, often bordering on ugly - yet interesting! The bulk of my affections goes to the plates of radiolarians and other symmetrical microorganisms: here Haeckel is in his element, revealing the geometric beauty of organisms that we rarely see in life as they are too small or live underwater. They are inspiring for designing patterns and scuptural forms: get this book if you are interested in biology, art history or design!

The plates are well printed, reproducing colour and detail well, while the size is big enough to see the details clearly, while small enough to have a book that can be handled and browsed comfortably.

a brilliant draftsman and scientist, heackel shows us that the natural world is not only incredibly beautiful, but weirder than anything you can invent.
there are larger and more expensive editions of this book to be had, as well as smaller and digital versions. the 12" x 9" dover edition folio is a nice reference size, well printed, colorful, and a great price.