Frank H.

Netter
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Frank H. Netter
Born

25 April 1906
New York, NY, USA

Died

17 September 1991

Education

New York University School of Medicine

Known for

Netter's Atlas of Human Anatomy

Medical career

Profession

Physician (Surgeon)

Specialism

Medical illustrator

Frank H. Netter (25 April 1906 17 September 1991) was an American surgeon and
celebratedmedical illustrator. The first edition of his Atlas of Human Anatomy his
"personal Sistine Chapel"[this quote needs a citation] was published in 1989; he was a Fellow of the New
York Academy of Medicine where he was first published in 1957.[1]
Contents
[hide]

1 Biography
o

1.1 Early life, training, and medical career

1.2 Early medical art career

1.3 Career with CIBA

2 Legacy

3 Awards and honors

4 References

5 External links

Biography[edit]
Early life, training, and medical career[edit]
Frank Henry Netter was born in Manhattan at 53rd Street and Seventh Avenue, and grew up
wanting to be an artist. In high school, he obtained a scholarship to study at the National
Academy of Design, doing so at night while continuing high school. After further studying at
the Art Students League of New York and with private teachers, he began a commercial art
career, quickly achieving success and doing work for theSaturday Evening Post and The New
York Times. However, his family disapproved of a career as an artist and he agreed to study
medicine. After getting a degree at the City College of New York, he completed medical school
at New York University and a surgical internship atBellevue Hospital and attempted to begin
practicing medicine. However, as Netter put it: "This was in 1933the depths of the Depression
and there was no such thing as medical practice. If a patient ever wandered into your office by
mistake, he didn't pay."[this quote needs a citation]

Early medical art career[edit]

Having continued doing freelance art during his medical training, including some work for his
professors, he fell back on medical art to supplement his income. In particular, pharmaceutical
companies began seeking Netter for illustrations to help sell new products, such asNovocain.
Soon after a misunderstanding wherein Netter asked for $1,500 for a series of 5 pictures and an
advertising manager agreed to and paid $1,500 each - $7,500 for the series - Netter gave up the
practice of medicine.

Career with CIBA[edit]

Cover of the German edition of Atlas of Human Anatomy (Atlas der Anatomie des Menschen)

In 1936, the CIBA Pharmaceutical Company commissioned a small work from him, a fold-up
illustration of a heart to promote the sale of digitalis. This proved hugely popular with physicians,
and a reprint without the advertising copy was even more popular.
Quickly following on the success of the fold-up heart, fold-up versions of other organs were
produced. Netter then proposed that a series of pathology illustrations be produced. These
illustrations were distributed to physicians as cards in a folder, with advertising for CIBA products
on the inside of the folder, and were also popular with physicians. CIBA then collected these
illustrations in book form, producing the CIBA Collection of Medical Illustrations, which ultimately
comprised 8 volumes (13 books).
Beginning in 1948, CIBA also re-used illustrations by Netter in another series of materials to be
given to physicians, the Clinical Symposia series. These were small magazine-like brochures that
typically featured an extensive article on a medical condition, commonly with about a dozen of

Netter's illustrations. This series was produced until at least the early 1990s. In 1989,
Netter's Atlas of Human Anatomy was published, assembled from his previous paintings and
correlated by updated diagrams.
CIBA's Medical Education Department (East Orange, NJ) filtered the paintings for printing, in an
effort that The Big Green Books "might appear more 'even' over time." [this quote needs a citation] This
sometimes resulted in a considerable reduction of color variation from the truly-unique originals.
Digital re-scanning of the originals continue to be published by the current copyright owner to the
collection, Elsevier Medical Publishing. Selected original paintings have been showcased
internationally.
Netter's career was presented in a commemorative video by Ciba-Geigy in 1988.

Legacy[edit]
In all, Netter produced nearly 4,000 illustrations, which have been included in countless
publications. In perspective, that number represents an image researched, sketched, and
completely painted for every three business days for over 50 years.
The vast bulk of Netter's illustrations were produced for and owned by CIBA Pharmaceutical
Company and its successor, CIBA-Geigy, which has since merged with Sandoz Laboratories to
become Novartis. In June 2000, Novartis sold its interest in Netter's works to MediMedia USA's
subsidiary Icon Learning Systems, which in turn has sold the portfolio to Elsevier, which
continues to make his work available in various formats. His Atlas of Human Anatomy and other
atlases have become a staple of medical education.
Dr. Netter's contribution to the study of human anatomy is epochal. He has advanced our
understanding of anatomy more than any other medical illustrator since the 16th century,
when Vesalius introduced drawings based on cadaveric dissections.
Dr. Michael DeBakey, [2]

The Frank H. Netter M.D. School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University in North Haven,
Connecticut opened its doors in 2013.

Awards and honors[edit]

1966, Townsend Harris Medal, City College of New York

1969, The Harold Swanberg Distinguished Service Award, American Medical Writers
Association

1973, Distinguished Service Award, National Kidney Foundation

1979, Resolution of Commendation, Florida State Legislature

1981, Distinguished Service Award, American College of Cardiology

1981, Honorary Degree, Doctor of Science, New Jersey College of Medicine and
Dentistry

1985, Honorary Degree, Doctor of Science, Georgetown University

1986, Life Achievement Award, Society of Illustrators

1986, The Solomon A. Berson Medical Alumni Achievement Award, New York
University School of Medicine

1986, Honorary Degree, Doctor of Science, Universit de Sherbrooke, Canada

1986, Lifetime Achievement Award, Association of Medical Illustrators

1986, Dedication of the Netter Library, CIBA-Geigy Corporation

1987, Honorary Member, Radiological Society of North America

1988, Honorary Award for Contribution to Knowledge of Musculoskeletal

System, American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons

1988, Honorary Fellowship, Medical Artists Association of Great Britain

1990, Award of Special Recognition, Association of Medical Illustrators

1990, Honorary Member Award, American Association of Clinical Anatomists

References[edit]
1.

Jump up^ "Special Collections Malloch Room Newsletter 2" (PDF), New York Academy of
Medicine, retrieved 2014-03-01

2.

Jump up^ "Netter Medical Trial Exhibits. The Netter Story". Fort Lauderdale, FL: The
Graphic Witness. Retrieved 25 April 2014.

Dr. Frank H. Netter (January 1981), "Frank Netter: The Man, The Artist, The
Surgeon", Medical Times (condensed reprint from The Saturday Evening Post, 1976)

The Five Senses, CIBA-Geigy Corporation, 1992, ASIN B00A17MKVE (memorial portfolio
and essays)

Netter, Francine Mary (his daughter) (2013). Medicine's Michelangelo: The Life & Art of
Frank H. Netter, MD. Quinnipiac University Press.ISBN 0989137600.

External links[edit]

"Frank H. Netter, MD", Netter Digital Images (Elsevier), retrieved 2013-01-12 - Short
biographical article by the current publisher and copyright-owner
"Netter", US Elsevier Health Bookshop, retrieved 2013-01-12 - Via NYAM
Netter Images, retrieved 2013-01-12 - The official Facebook page of the Netter Team at
Reed Elsevier