Eadweard MUYBRIDGE Animal Locomotion, Plate 299 (Tennis)  (1887)

Playing with a Ball, one of 781 original collotypes from Eadweard Muybridge's magnum opus of photographic motion study, Animal Locomotion (1887), included in vol VII: Males and Females (draped) and Miscellaneous Subjects. Printed with Muybridge’s letterpress credit, series title, plate number and date on a two-tone sheet. Printed by JB Lippincott Company, 1887. Provenance: Corcoran Gallery of Art Musueum Washington DC, Gray Organischi Architecture, Conneticut.

In very good condition for its age, with light overall discolouration and some staining at the plate edges and margins. A beautiful, unusual and very scarce image that will frame up and display beautifully. An original plate and not a reprint, this is a wonderful and rare collotype by Muybridge - an extraordinary image showing a robed woman playing around with a tennis racket and ball. We also have Plate 297 for sale - the 2 together make a beautiful pair. Unframed, but sold with mount and ready to frame.

The research and photography for Animal Locomotion was carried out for the University of Pennsylvania in 1884-1885, using and improving the techniques developed in the 1870s. Of the 781 plates, 95 were devoted to the horse and 124 to other animals. The other 562 are devoted to men, women, and children, nude, semi-nude, and draped, walking, running, dancing, getting up and lying down, wrestling, boxing, playing tennis...