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Horse and rider
Muybridge, Eadweard, born 1830 - died 1904 - Enlarge image
Horse and rider
- Object:
Photograph
- Place of origin:
Pennsylvania, USA (photographed)
- Date:
1887 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Muybridge, Eadweard, born 1830 - died 1904 (photographer)
- Materials and Techniques:
Collotype
- Credit Line:
Bought by subscription
- Museum number:
PH.1104-1889
- Gallery location:
Prints & Drawings Study Room, level H, case X, shelf 326, box H
Object Type
This sequence of photographs is one plate out of 781 that form Eadweard Muybridge's series Animal Locomotion, published by the University of Pennsylvania, USA, in 1887.
Ownership & Use
The South Kensington Museum (later the V&A) subscribed to Animal Locomotion at the time it was produced. Subscribers guaranteed an initial number of sales of an expensive work, thus ensuring that a publication was viable before production began. They included scientists and artists, as well as museums.
People
Eadweard Muybridge was the name adopted by the photographer Edward James Muggeridge (1830-1904). He was of British origin but lived and worked mostly in California, USA. He was already well known for his landscape views of the American West before making his famous series Animal Locomotion. He is also remembered today for his eventful personal life: in 1874 he shot dead the lover of his wife, was arrested, charged, imprisoned, brought to trial and finally acquitted.
Materials & Making
Exposures were made in rapid succession by means of threads attached to cameras placed about half a meter apart. The camera shutter was activated when the horse broke the thread while going past.
