Research Catalog

Postures : body language in art

Title
Postures : body language in art / Desmond Morris.
Author
Morris, Desmond
Publication
  • London ; New York, New York : Thames & Hudson, 2019.
  • ©2019

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StatusFormatAccessCall NumberItem Location
TextUse in library JQE 20-250Schwarzman Building - Art & Architecture Room 300

Details

Description
319 pages : color illustrations; 25 cm
Summary
"Every time an artist portrays a human subject, a decision has to be made about the posture of the figure. Will they be standing, sitting or reclining? Smiling, screaming or weeping? Will they be clasping their hands, crossing their arms or raising their fist? For the first time, celebrated surrealist and bestselling author Desmond Morris brings together his two fields of expertise - art and science - in a single volume. As well as exploring such familiar actions as the handshake, the nose-thumb and the dominant elbow, he draws us into an absorbing story of art detection, tracing the roots of a number of gestures that have baffled and intrigued the art world for years. Why, for example, did Napoleon pose for official portraits with his right hand thrust into his waistcoat, and what is the meaning of the double-split hand gesture displayed in El Greco's The Nobleman with his Hand on his Chest? Encompassing a vast range of visual creativity, from prehistoric figurines, Roman artefacts and Renaissance frescoes to contemporary art and graffiti, Postures: Body Language in Art unlocks new ways of looking at art. Surprising similarities are uncovered, as well as now rarely used gestures, so that even the most familiar works are suddenly seen in a new light."--
Subject
  • Body language in art > History
  • Body language in art > Social aspects
  • Art and society
  • Body language in art
Genre/Form
History.
Bibliography (note)
  • Includes bibliographical references (page 308) and index.
Contents
Greetings -- Blessings -- Status -- Insults -- Threats -- Distress -- Self-protection -- The erotic -- At rest.
Call Number
JQE 20-250
ISBN
  • 9780500022610
  • 0500022615
OCLC
1112379391
Author
Morris, Desmond, author.
Title
Postures : body language in art / Desmond Morris.
Publisher
London ; New York, New York : Thames & Hudson, 2019.
Copyright Date
©2019
Type of Content
text
still image
Type of Medium
unmediated
Type of Carrier
volume
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (page 308) and index.
Research Call Number
JQE 20-250
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