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Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel
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Art Forms in Nature: The Prints of Ernst Haeckel Paperback – August 25, 2008

4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 856 ratings
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The geometric shapes and natural forms, captured with exceptional precision in Ernst Haeckel's prints, still influence artists and designers to this day. This volume highlights the research and findings of this natural scientist. Powerful modern microscopes have confirmed the accuracy of Haeckel's prints, which even in their day, became world famous. Haeckel's portfolio, first published between 1899 and 1904 in separate installments, is described in the opening essays. The plates illustrate Haeckel's fundamental monistic notion of the "unity of all living things" and the wide variety of forms are executed with utmost delicacy. Incipient microscopic organisms are juxtaposed with highly developed plants and animals. The pages, ordered according to geometric and "constructive" aspects, document the oness of the world in its most diversified forms. This collection of plates was not only well-received by scientists, but by artists and architects as well. Rene Binet, a pioneer of glass and iron constructions, Emile Galle, a renowned Art Nouveau designer, and the photographer Karl Blossfeld all make explicit reference to Haeckel in their work.
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  1. Print length
    140 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Prestel
  4. Publication date
    August 25, 2008
  5. Dimensions
    9.5 x 0.5 x 12.5 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    3791319906
  7. ISBN-13
    978-3791319902
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Every biology student knows Ernst Haeckel as the originator of the "Biogenetic Law": ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny. Haeckel was a passionate student of the evolutionary shaping of biological forms, and Art Forms in Nature captures both his artistic sensibility and the scientific rigor he applied to all his studies. First published in 1904, Art Forms in Nature is a glorification of function and form, a demonstration of organic symmetry that has nothing--and everything--to do with nature as it actually exists. Each plate exhibits organisms carefully arranged and exquisitely detailed, "a symbiosis between decorative sketches and descriptive observations of nature," as Olaf Breidbach states in his fascinating introductory text. The radiolarians, medusae, rotifers, bryozoans, and even frogs and turtles lovingly recreated here are gorgeous and self-explanatory, rendered in delicate, filigreed lines, and colored gently with muted green, delicate pink, and sepia. Art students will appreciate the designs found in nature--scientists will love the evolutionary statement of form inherent in the beauty. --Therese Littleton

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"Art Forms in Nature is a library of possibilities." -CoolTools

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Prestel (August 25, 2008)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 140 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 3791319906
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-3791319902
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.9 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 9.5 x 0.5 x 12.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 856 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
856 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the visuals in the book artistically embellished with wonderful print quality. They also describe the storytelling as mesmerizing in intricate detail and great for inspiration and pure fascination. Readers also mention the themes as great for nature forms and inspiration.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

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VisualsCraftsmanshipStorytellingThemesChildren's contentAlignment
88 customers mention "Visuals"88 positive0 negative

Customers find the visuals in the book organic, with artistic embellishment. They also appreciate the large prints, some in full color, and a pretty good range of his art. Readers also say the images are not pixelated or poorly blown up.

"...it very hard to explain what exactly makes these plates so wonderfully beautiful...." Read more

"...The drawings are remarkable in their organic complexity and artistic embellishment. Would make some fine framed wall prints in the right environment." Read more

"What can I say. The illustrations are amazing, the subject matter is gorgeous, and the illustrator is from a generation of gentlemen..." Read more

"...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..." Read more

29 customers mention "Craftsmanship"29 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the wonderful print quality, lovely images, and well written and illustrated book. They also say the color is flawless, the pages are thick and sturdy, and each image is amazing.

"...Would make some fine framed wall prints in the right environment." Read more

"...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..." Read more

"...The color is flawless, the pages are thick and sturdy, and each image is amazing. There are no pixelated, poorly blown-up images in this book...." Read more

"...radiolaria, algae, and a few other plants and animals, beautifully printed in high quality on heavyweight paper...." Read more

23 customers mention "Storytelling"23 positive0 negative

Customers find the storytelling in the book mesmerizing in its intricate detail. They appreciate the good explanation of Haeckel's life and work, and the amazing tattoo ideas.

"This book is a treasure. The drawings are remarkable in their organic complexity and artistic embellishment...." Read more

"...They are inspiring for designing patterns and scuptural forms: get this book if you are interested in biology, art history or design!..." Read more

"...He is amazing. The foreword is informative of his process and the purpose of the book, and gives some insight on how this book helped Darwin in his..." Read more

"...It's just so weird and cool and amazing. The drawings are absolutely scientific, and when you glance at a page you know you are looking at a..." Read more

17 customers mention "Themes"17 positive0 negative

Customers find the themes in the book great for inspiration and pure fascination. They also say it's a great resource not only for artists and nature lovers, but also phenomenal and ultra-inspirational.

"...The book also has a highly informative article on Haeckel and his times, and on those that were influenced by him...." Read more

"A fascinating book about natural forms." Read more

"...1. Ernst Haeckel. Great stuff, fascinating, awesome pictures. About this there can be no doubt, and in general this is 5 star stuff.2...." Read more

"Got it for Christmas and loved looking through it! Very nice for those interested in science, art, or both!" Read more

6 customers mention "Children's content"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the content of the book a learner's delight. They also say it's a great picture book for children to learn about the planet.

"Each page is a learner's delight. I had absolutely no idea what I was looking at everytime...." Read more

"...A must for every artist's library and a great picture book for children to learn about the planet of which they are a part." Read more

"...The book is filled with many beautiful chromolithographs, and every page is amazing...." Read more

"...After getting the book, the reading was as cool as the pictures. not to mention i now have a half sleeve of Haekel art on my right arm :-)" Read more

4 customers mention "Alignment"0 positive4 negative

Customers find the alignment of the book skimpy and don't do full justice to the vibrant, vivid, and gorgeous colors.

"...slightly offset in the printing process so that all the colors/lines don't line up properly...." Read more

"...It doesn't look like a part of the original drawing as the color quality fades in and out vertically" Read more

"Gorgeous. Species names are not listed for the individual organisms shown, which is a shame." Read more

"...They skimp on color and don't do full justice to the vibrant, vivid colors of Haeckel's organisms...." Read more

Really a good book
5 out of 5 stars
Really a good book
Its a really nice book. The illustrations are amazing. Im very happy with the purchase!
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Top reviews from the United States

Phoenicia
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful book! Highly recommended.
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2006
Verified Purchase
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!
70 people found this helpful
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Cee Gee
5.0 out of 5 stars Science & art come together.
Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2022
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This book is a treasure. The drawings are remarkable in their organic complexity and artistic embellishment. Would make some fine framed wall prints in the right environment.
2 people found this helpful
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J. Colombe
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, brilliant illustrations by an observant gentleman biologist
Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2009
Verified Purchase
What can I say. The illustrations are amazing, the subject matter is gorgeous, and the illustrator is from a generation of gentlemen (and occasionally, back then, gentlewomen) that made wonderfully detailed artworks as scientists, or as they used to call them, natural philosophers.

If you are curious, and tend toward the psychedelic, the complex, the ramified, and the 'Tiffany-twisted', you will be very happy looking at the pages of this text. If you are an artist of any kind, this book may inspire you. Breathe, nay, suck it in. You won't be disappointed.

However, if you think that 'art' is just a decorative discipline, or that art is something that should always be narrowly 'pretty', you may wish to look elsewhere. There's plenty of pretty here, but some of it is downright biologically-ugly, and by that, I mean gorgeous to me.

Sometimes ugly is pretty. Biology is refined, and crude. Sophisticated, and blunt. Space-age, and extinct. And so on... We will be searching, as natural philosophers, through all that biology has to tell us, long after any of us are dead, to find beauty and ugliness. Waste, rot, carnage. Sustainability, health, wealth, welfare, agreement. And enjoyment.

'nuff said.
7 people found this helpful
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PaxSix
5.0 out of 5 stars A collection from a 19th century master.
Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2010
Verified Purchase
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.
9 people found this helpful
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Apple
5.0 out of 5 stars This book is flawless
Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2012
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The book contains over 100 plates of stunning, crisp artwork by Ernst Häckel. He is amazing. The foreword is informative of his process and the purpose of the book, and gives some insight on how this book helped Darwin in his theories. It's awesome to know that these two greats knew each other.

The book contains images of mostly plants and sea life that demonstrate the geometric patterns in nature. The color is flawless, the pages are thick and sturdy, and each image is amazing. There are no pixelated, poorly blown-up images in this book. If you're an art lover like me, or seek drawing inspiration, this is a book for you! It's a perfect coffee table book.

I wish there were more explanations of the creatures in this book, but even with almost no text, the book stands out!
14 people found this helpful
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C.N.
5.0 out of 5 stars The preeminent Haeckel collection
Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2012
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I am absolutely amazed by both the quality and content of this gorgeous book. Art Forms in Nature contains 100 pages of Haeckel's art of radiolaria, algae, and a few other plants and animals, beautifully printed in high quality on heavyweight paper. This is a great coffee table book, sure to be appreciated by anyone with interests in art or natural sciences. Most of the art is colored or shaded, but even the few black and white pieces are outstanding. Each page of Haeckel's art is breathtaking, and the 20 page introduction puts his work in context for Haeckel's time and ties it to modern day discoveries. I highly recommend this book, and I wish I had bought it sooner!
4 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Patricia Bell
5.0 out of 5 stars Stunningly beautiful artwork
Reviewed in Canada on June 2, 2023
Verified Purchase
I was shocked, amazed, stunned, impressed and wowed with each new page which displayed more incredible etchings of our magnificent world at closer inspection. I could not believe my eyes with the attention to detail. This incredible work that this marine biologist / graphic artist was able to put together in this most amazing book is truly a must have for any upcoming artist, biologist and naturalist.
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Anna of Owlcats
5.0 out of 5 stars Lovely to have a printed copy
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 23, 2023
Verified Purchase
I ran into some of Haekel's work on Pinterest originally, and didn't realise it was available in print. This particular edition is a nice large format book and while the colours may be slightly muted on the matte paper, the plates are still gorgeous to look at and quite clear enough for reference, which is why I bought it.
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Abraham Mendez
5.0 out of 5 stars Un libro maravilloso
Reviewed in Mexico on May 8, 2020
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El texto introductorio a las cien ilustraciones en color enriquece el contenido. Una muy bonita edición.
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leelewadee
5.0 out of 5 stars "d'une beauté à couper le soufle"
Reviewed in France on December 17, 2020
Verified Purchase
Envoyé en cadeau, ce livre a épaté ma mère. Si vous aimez la beauté, la nature et l'art: apparement, à couper le soufle!
2 people found this helpful
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Alexandra
5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinante
Reviewed in Spain on December 8, 2020
Verified Purchase
Me encanta este libro, las ilustraciones son increíblemente bonitas y fieles a la realidad. Desde que supe de su existencia quise tenerlo y una vez me llegó no pude dejar de verlo. El formato está muy bien, es de tapas blandas pero tiene un tamaño muy adecuado para poder contemplar las ilustraciones sin perder detalle y sin tener que separarlas en dos hojas, como pasa con otros formatos que he visto en la web. No lo cambiaría por nada del mundo.
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