Mid-Century Art of Ernst Haeckel

The octopus is my favorite animal. I think it's a odd and gorgeous creature. There's alway been one image of an octopus that I especially loved, but I was never able to find the source (bottom left).

But now I know it comes from Kunstformen der Natur or Art Forms of Nature by Ernst Haeckel.

Ernst Haeckel isn't exactly a mid-century artist, in fact much of his work isn't even from the same century as mid-century art — Art Forms of Nature was first published in 1899.

Besides me finally finding the image of the octopus I've been looking for, I found a book full of gorgeous illustrations of nature.

I mention the book and the images with here because I think they would look outstanding on the wall of any mid-century or mid-century modern home. I love when art plays against the look of a room. The elaborate illustrations and lines of Haeckel's work would play lovingly against the streamlined look and straight lines of mid-century modern furniture.

The best part of it is that the images in Art Forms of Nature are now public domain, so if you can find a high enough resolution image, you're free to print it and hang it on your wall.

You can see all the images from Kunstformen der Natur here and you can buy them in book form here.