in
Warsaw In non-religious art of the modern era, the rabbit appears in the same context as in antiquity: as prey for the hunter, or representing spring or autumn, as well as an attribute of Venus and a symbol of physical love. In cycles of the
Labours of the Months, rabbits frequently appear in the spring months. In
Francesco del Cossa's painting of April in the
Palazzo Schifanoia in
Ferrara, Italy,
Venus' children, surrounded by a flock of white rabbits, symbolize love and fertility. In
Italian Renaissance and
Baroque art, rabbits are depicted more often than hares. In an
allegory on lust by
Pisanello, a naked woman lies on a couch with a rabbit at her feet.
Pinturicchio's scene of
Susanna in the Bath is displayed in the Vatican's
Borgia Apartment. Here, each of the two old men are accompanied by a pair of hares or rabbits, clearly indicating wanton lust. In
Piero di Cosimo's painting of Venus and
Mars, a cupid resting on Venus clings to a white rabbit for similar reasons.
Still lifes in
Dutch Golden Age painting and their
Flemish equivalents often included a moralizing element which was understood by their original viewers without assistance: fish and meat can allude to religious dietary precepts, fish indicating fasting while great piles of meat indicate
voluptas carnis (lusts of the flesh), especially if lovers are also depicted. Rabbits and birds, perhaps in the company of
carrots and other
phallic symbols, were easily understood by contemporary viewers in the same sense. As small animals with fur, hares and rabbits allowed the artist to showcase his ability in painting this difficult material. Dead hares appear in the works of the earliest painter of still life collections of foodstuffs in a kitchen setting,
Frans Snyders, and remain a common feature, very often sprawling hung up by a rear leg, in the works of
Jan Fyt,
Adriaen van Utrecht and many other specialists in the genre. By the end of the 17th century, the grander subgenre of the hunting trophy still life appeared, now set outdoors, as though at the back door of a palace or hunting lodge. Hares (but rarely rabbits) continued to feature in the works of the Dutch and Flemish originators of the genre, and later French painters like
Jean-Baptiste Oudry. From the
Middle Ages until modern times, the right to hunt was a vigorously defended privilege of the ruling classes. Hunting
Still lifes, often in combination with hunting equipment, adorn the rooms of baroque palaces, indicating the rank and prestige of their owners.
Jan Weenix' painting shows a still life reminiscent of a trophy case with birds and small game, fine fruits, a pet dog and a pet monkey, arranged in front of a classicising garden sculpture with the figure of
Hercules and an opulent palace in the background. The wealth and luxurious lifestyle of the patron or owner is clearly shown. The children's tales of the English author
Beatrix Potter, illustrated by herself, include several titles featuring the badly behaved
Peter Rabbit and other rabbit characters, including her first and most successful book
The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1902), followed by
The Tale of Benjamin Bunny (1904), and
The Tale of The Flopsy Bunnies (1909). Potter's anthropomorphic clothed rabbits are probably the most familiar artistic rabbits in the English-speaking world, no doubt influenced by illustrations by
John Tenniel of the
White Rabbit in
Lewis Carroll's book ''
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''.
Joseph Beuys, who always finds a place for a rabbit in his works, sees it as symbolizing resurrection. In the context of his action "
How to Explain Pictures to a Dead Hare", he stated that the rabbit "...has a direct relationship to birth... For me, the rabbit is the symbol of incarnation. Because the rabbit shows in reality what man can only show in his thoughts. He buries himself, he buries himself in a depression. He incarnates himself in the earth, and that alone is important."
Masquerade (book) (1979), written and illustrated by the artist
Kit Williams, is ostensibly a children's book, but contains elaborate clues to the location of a jewelled golden hare, also made by Williams, which he had buried at the location in England to which the clues in the book led. The hare was not found until 1982, in what later emerged as dubious circumstances. The Welsh sculptor
Barry Flanagan (1944-2009) was best known for his energetic bronzes of hares, which he produced throughout his career. Many have a comic element, and the length and thinness of the hare's body is often exaggerated.
Dürer's Young Hare '', by
Albrecht Dürer (1502) '' (2005), in the style of Albrecht Dürer Probably one of the most famous depictions of an animal in the history of European art is the painting
Young Hare by
Albrecht Dürer, completed in 1502 and now preserved in the
Albertina in Vienna. Dürer's
watercolor is seen in the context of his other nature studies, such as his almost equally famous
Meadow or his
Bird Wings. He chose to paint these in watercolor or
gouache, striving for the highest possible precision and "realistic" representation. The hare pictured by Dürer probably does not have a symbolic meaning, but it does have an exceptional reception history. Reproductions of Dürer's
Hare have often been a permanent component of
bourgeois living rooms in Germany. The image has been printed in textbooks; published in countless reproductions; embossed in copper, wood or stone; represented three-dimensionally in plastic or plaster; encased in
plexiglas; painted on ostrich eggs; printed on plastic bags; surreally distorted in
Hasengiraffe ("Haregiraffe") by Martin Missfeldt; reproduced as a joke by
Fluxus artists; and cast in gold; or sold cheaply in
galleries and at
art fairs Since early 2000,
Ottmar Hörl has created several works based on Dürer's
Hare, including a giant pink version.
Sigmar Polke has also engaged with the hare on paper or textiles, or as part of his installations, and even in rubber band form.
Dieter Roth's
Köttelkarnikel ("Turd Bunny") is a copy of Dürer's
Hare made from rabbit droppings, and
Klaus Staeck enclosed one in a little wooden box, with a cutout hole, so that it could look out and breathe. Dürer's
Hare has even inspired a depiction of the mythological
Wolpertinger.
Depictions of Mary Toft Birthing Rabbits William Hogarth depicted
Mary Toft giving birth to rabbits in 1726 in the etchings
Cunicularii or The Wise Men of Godliman in Consultation (1726) and
Credulity, Superstition, and Fanaticism (1762). Mary Toft was a woman who convinced many medical professionals and the public at the time that she was birthing rabbits, when it was, in fact, a hoax. Inspired by the work of William Hogarth, artist Amelia Biewald resurrected the story of Mary Toft into the gallery with
The Curious Case of Mary Toft in 2020. == In heraldry ==