Shadowy Figures
Fig. 1. Silhouette of okapis by Ugo Mochi (1889–1977), c. 1953, originally published in Mochi and T. Donald Carter, Hoofed Mammals of the World (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1953). Cut paper on paper, 9 by 11 1⁄2 inches. Private collection. Fig. 2. Gerenuks by Mochi. Cut paper on paper, 5 by 10 inches. Private collection. When Charles Scribner’s Sons decided to publish an illustrated book on hoofed mammals in 1953, it was probably not a subject with promising financial prospects—a worthy scientific treatise, perhaps, but certainly not something expected to appeal to the general public. Yet when the book appeared, its dazzling black-and-white graphics made it one of Scribner’s most appealing offerings of the year.1 The text, written by the American Museum of Natural History mammalogist T. Donald Carter, On the Art of Ugo Mochi and other Past Masters of the Animal Silhouette was substantive and scientifically solid, but it was the book’s animal silhouette illustrations by the Italian-born artist Ugo Mochi that made it stand out (Fig. 1). Building on a long tradition of silhouette making, Mochi (pronounced “Mokee”) changed the public’s perception of the art form from one of human representation to one of scientific documentation. All the while, he managed to imbue his work with artistic flair that still appeals to collectors today. Fig. 3. Flowering tree by Mochi, 1969. Cut black paper, 94 by 22 inches. Originally, this and the example in Fig. 4 were among more than a dozen Mochi silhouettes mounted on glass, backlit, and hung in the cafeteria of the American Museum of Natural History in New York. American Museum of Natural History, New York.