Plate Number 178. Stepping on and over a trestle

Art Historical Context

Eadweard Muybridge *Plate Number 178.pping on and over astle* (1887 is a captivating collotype print from his pioneering *Animal Locomotion* series showcasing a nude male figure mid-stride as he navigates a wooden trestle. Muybridge, a British-born photographer working in America, transformed visual arts in the late 19th century by using banks of up to 24 cameras triggered by the subject's movement. This sequential plate freezes an everyday action into precise instants, revealing the fluidity and mechanics of human gait that the naked eye overlooks. Printed via collotype—a meticulous photomechanical process yielding rich tonal depth and fine detail—this 16.9 × 43.6 cm image exemplifies how Muybridge bridged science and art. His work, acquired by the Corcoran Gallery in 1887 and now in the National Gallery of Art's collection, influenced early filmmakers like the Lumière brothers and anatomists studying biomechanics. Imagine the thrill of 1880s audiences poring over these plates, unlocking motion's secrets just as cinema dawned—a true cornerstone of photographic innovation.

About the Artist

Eadweard Muybridge · 1830–1904

Eadweard Muybridge (1830-1904) was an English-American photographer who revolutionized the understanding of motion through his pioneering chronophotographic studies. Born Edward James Muggeridge in Kingston upon Thames, England, he emigrated to America and became famous first for his dramatic landscape photographs of Yosemite Valley, then for his groundbreaking motion studies that proved horses li...