The 1821 Derby at Epsom by Theodore Gericault
Horses have appeared in works of art throughout history.
These depictions showed great knowledge of equine anatomy.
Stubbss detailed anatomical drawings greatly aided later artists.
Horse art peaked during the 19th century when horse racing became a popular form of sport.
Horses run so fast that the human eye cannot break down the action of their gait.
So a lot ofguessworkwent into those horse paintings.
The result was the characteristic rocking horse posture or the flying gallop.
The characteristic flying gallop seen in Baronet by George Stubbs, 1794.
Another inaccurate depiction of galloping horses.
Anything that moved around a lot appeared as a blur.
Muybridge tried to plead insanity, but the jury dismissed it.
It certainly helped that Stanford had arranged for his criminal defense.
Eadweard Muybridge in 1899.
Muybridge resumed working for Stanford in 1876, continually improving and refining his photographic process.
This time Muybridge was asked to photograph another of Stanfords horses named Sallie Gardner.
To freeze the action of a galloping horse was no trivial matter.
The original 12 photographs of Sallie Gardner.
Frames 2 and 3 clearly show the horse completely off the ground with its legs gathered underneath.
Muybridges groundbreaking work established that indeed they are, but not like contemporary illustrations depicted.
It even has a page atIMDB.
When it began to appear that Muybridge was stealing all the limelight, Stanford tried to discredit him.
Muybridge ended upsuing Stanford, accusing him of wrecking his reputation.
But the lawsuit was thrown out of court.
An improved setup Muybridge used to photograph galloping horses.
This one employed 24 cameras.
A different galloping horse, Annie G., obtained with the above setup.
Muybridge began to look elsewhere for funding, and eventually found support from the University of Pennsylvania.
