Plate Number 366. Running, hitch and kick 1887

Editor: This is “Plate Number 366. Running, hitch and kick” by Eadweard Muybridge, from 1887. It's a gelatin-silver print, showing sequential photographs of a man in motion. It feels very scientific, but the figures are also strangely beautiful in their poses. What do you see in this work, considering its historical context? Curator: I see a fascinating intersection of art, science, and the evolving role of photography in the late 19th century. Muybridge's work, especially his motion studies, was initially driven by scientific curiosity and the desire to analyze animal and human locomotion. But it also profoundly impacted the art world. Editor: In what way? Curator: Before Muybridge, artists often relied on assumptions about movement, but his photographs offered concrete evidence. Think about how painters at the time struggled to accurately depict a horse galloping! Muybridge provided visual data that reshaped artistic representations. Moreover, institutions quickly picked up on this phenomenon, further granting legitimacy to the field of photography. What’s curious is, do you think his intention was solely scientific? Editor: Well, the arrangement of the photos into a grid almost gives it a narrative quality. Like a very early comic strip. That seems artistic, or at least performative. Curator: Precisely! His work existed in this liminal space between scientific document and spectacle. Public lectures and demonstrations accompanied his photography and his ‘zoopraxiscope’ which turned these still images back into motion pictures – contributing significantly to the birth of cinema itself, transforming the consumption of imagery forever. So, what was initially considered data became a cultural event. Editor: I see what you mean! It’s like he was creating a new kind of public performance using photography. I had only thought about it in terms of science or art, not its place within cultural history. Thanks! Curator: And it's in this complex interplay of forces that Muybridge's true contribution lies. This single series of photographs tells such a complex story about society itself.