“Animals in Bronze” explores the groundbreaking work of artists from the animalier movement from Europe and America, including Antoine-Louis Barye, Pierre-Jules Mêne, Thomas Frelinghuysen, Theo. Alice Ruggles-Kitson, and more.

The first animalier artists shocked the art world with what was considered a crude subject matter. In the 1830s, a time when humans, history or mythology were considered the only appropriate subjects for art, sculptor Antoine-Louis Barye drew criticism for capturing the realistic and often intimate sculptures of animals. Eventually, his work gained acceptance for his skill at capturing their sensitivity and character, beginning the animalier movement that continues to this day.

The Arkell Museum’s own sculpture collection includes pieces by Edward McCartan, Anna Hyatt Huntington, Frederic Remington, and Armory Simons. Selections will be on display in the Nightwatch Gallery through the duration of the exhibition. These sculptures were gifts to the collection by Bartlett Arkell or by the artists themselves in the 1920s and 1930s.