A New Graphic Novel Explores the Life and Strange Times of Eadweard Muybridge

Depending on who you ask, groundbreaking photographer Eadweard Muybridge was either an eccentric, a genius or a total psychopath. What is not in dispute is the impact he had on the earliest days of photography and, by sheer ripple effect, moviemaking.

Now, a new graphic novel about the photographer seeks to retrace the Englishman’s life in San Francisco, his work with Leland Stanford, and the legendary images he captured of Yosemite more than 20 years before the expanse became a national park. In telling his story, Guy Delisle’s Muybridge also breaks down the earliest days of commercial photography and how so many technical innovations came about in the latter half of the 19th century. Spanning the years between 1850 and 1904, the book acts as a handy glimpse into Bay Area culture during the Victorian era.

Delisle successfully captures Muybridge’s downright dogged pursuit of images that might enlighten the world — particularly those of animals and humans in motion. Famously, Muybridge was the first photographer to prove that horses lift all four hooves off the ground while galloping. Stanford was the person who tasked Muybridge with proving that fact, and the book documents their friendship, as well as various other projects the two collaborated on.

Making all of these history lessons more compelling, the author never once forgets about the idiosyncrasies, recklessness and fits of short-tempered rage that also shaped Muybridge’s life and work. He was a man who seemed to have no qualms about committing both child neglect and, rather notoriously, murder. The story sticks closely to events in Muybridge’s life, but, outside of suggesting that a head injury may have impacted his personality, the book doesn’t really explain why Muybridge was such a peculiar character. Understandable: there may not be a definitive answer to that question.

While the graphic novel is alive with expressive characters and delightfully detailed depictions of the architecture of the period, the thing that really elevates Muybridge is its use of historical photography. The first photograph ever taken by Nicéphore Niépce in 1827 is here. As is a French street scene captured by Louis Daguerre in 1838. Then, of course, there’s the work of Muybridge himself. These include an image of him defying death while sitting precariously at the end of a cliff in 1872. There are images he captured of Stanford’s famously doomed Nob Hill mansion. And, of course, those famous shots of the horse in motion — as well as a plethora of other animals — are included. These real images serve as a reminder of Muybridge’s lasting impact on photography and the moving image.