Faculty | April 27, 2012

Harvard sociobiologist E.O. Wilson on the origins of the arts

Sociobiologist E.O. Wilson on the evolution of culture

From The May-June 2012 Issue

The human urge to create art appears magnificently in the Paleolithic paintings from roughly 30,000 years ago at Chauvet Cave, in southern France. Here, the Panel of the Horses.

A bison, shown in twisted perspective; the doubling of the hindquarters and the extra legs may depict the animal running, or two bison side by side.

The Lion Panel, with bison (the lions’ likely prey), a young mammoth, and rhinoceros

Red bear

One rhinoceros from a group of 17

Dear Reader:

The text excerpted here was posted with permission of W.W. Norton, but that permission has since expired and the text has been taken down.

Read a Harvard Magazine profile of E.O. Wilson here.

Thank you for visiting.

Published in the May-June 2012 print issue under the headline “On the Origins of the Arts,” in the Features section.

Related topics

You might also like

Woman in a navy dress smiling while standing on a walkway with a blurred background.

Öberg to Lead Harvard Faculty Recruitment and Retention

The astrochemist will become senior vice provost for faculty affairs this summer.

Martin Nowak in a suit attentively listens during a conference, seated among an audience.

Martin Nowak Placed on Leave a Second Time

Further links to Jeffrey Epstein surface in newly released files

Eating for the Holidays, the Planet, and Your Heart

“Sustainable eating,” and healthy recipes you can prepare for the holidays.

Most popular

Ben S. Bernanke

Ben S. Bernanke ’75 Shares Economics Nobel

Three scholars honored for work on banking and financial crises.

Moungi Bawendi

Alumnus Moungi Bawendi Shares Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Chemist revolutionized production process of quantum dots

David Baker

Harvard Alumnus Wins Chemistry Nobel

David Baker ’84 invents new proteins not found in nature.

Explore More From Current Issue

A person climbs a curved ladder against a colorful background and four vertical ladders.

Undergraduate Column

Harvard’s Productivity Trap

What happened to doing things for the sake of enjoyment?

Purple violet flower with vibrant petals surrounded by green foliage.

Bees and Flowers Are Falling Out of Sync

Scientists are revisiting an old way of thinking about extinction.

A close-up of a beetle on the textured surface of a cycad cone and cycad cones seen in infrared silhouette.

Research in Brief

Cutting-edge discoveries, distilled