Anatomy and academies of art II − a tale of two cities

Anatomy and academies of art II − a tale of two cities:

Anatomy played a role in elevating the artisan to artist and his guild to an art academy. Many academies of art, with Professors of Anatomy, were established in Europe and the Americas from the 16th to the 19th centuries. Unlike the Royal Academy in London, the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin has had a turbulent history, burned to the ground in 1916, before being rebuilt in Ely Place and re-opening its school in 2008, where anatomy is taught once more. This paper compares and contrasts anatomy teaching in the RA and the RHA since their foundation.

Abstract

Anatomy played a significant role in the establishment of academies in art, initially in Italy and France, and then more widely in Europe and the Americas. This paper considers the role of anatomy in two such academies, the Royal Academy of Arts in London, and the Royal Hibernian Academy of Arts in Dublin. In both cases, anatomy teaching for art students was formalised by the appointment of a Professor of Anatomy, positions that continue to this day. The first Professor of Anatomy in the RA, William Hunter, set the standard by delivering lectures, carrying out dissections and producing écorchés. Some of his successors have published anatomy books specifically for artists, but their enthusiasm has varied. Unlike the continuity of the RA, the RHA has only had bespoke premises from 1826 to 1916, and from 1985 onwards, and its Schools or School have operated from 1826 to 1942, and from 2008 onwards. Anatomy teaching was a casualty of the decline of the formal art academy in the 20th century, but the fortunes of both are reviving in the early 21st century.