Hybrid Anatomy

I recently discovered the work of Roberto Osti, and was struck by how much he seems to draw on the style of the early grotesque.

The painting below is particularly reminiscent of the composite human/nonhuman bodies that characterise the early grotesque style.

[Shaman in Spring]

Osti combines human, animal and plant parts to create evocative, fantastical anatomies in pencil and paint.

[The Site of the Soul]

He depicts fantasy creatures using a medical-textbook style of illustration. Everything is cross-sectioned, showing veins, muscles and bones.

[Hybrid]

You could argue that these images re-situate creatures of mythology in a biomedical framework, making them seem less mysterious and more easily containable via scientific modes of viewing and classifying the body.

[Deconstruction of a Werewolf]

Or perhaps they offer an alternative perspective, and show us how supposedly 'imaginary' beasts might actually function in terms of real biological systems?

[Deconstruction of a Faun]

Either way, I like it.

You can check out more of Osti's work at his website here.

[Via Street Anatomy]