.
·Almost six years passed when The Secrets of Perfection online. In that intervening period I received not a little quantity of your letters with high estimation and did not receive any unfavorable. Thank you very much for your kind thought of me.
·Notwithstanding one very recent negation was, and I have added it together with my reasons here.
·About some changes in periodicity. Our new issues will appear in the beginning of April and in the beginning of December, because I want to reserve more bright days for painting. (J.M.)
Nonverbal communication became an object of great interest of contemporary psychologists, businessmen, various chiefs, and some others having high curiosity in everything interesting. Nonverbal expression is used in figurative arts, and that is why nonverbal language is holding attention of artists. Old masters applied approaches of nonverbal language consciously about what Leonardo da Vinci wrote in that way: A picture or representation of human figures, ought to be done in such a way as that the spectator may easily recognize, by means of their attitudes, the purpose in their minds. Thus, if you have to represent a man of noble character in the act of speaking, let his gestures be such as naturally accompany good words; and, in the same way, if you wish to depict a man of a brutal nature, give him fierce movements; as with his arms flung out towards the listener, and his head and breast thrust forward beyond his feet, as if following the speaker's hands. Thus it is with a deaf and dumb person who, when he sees two men in conversation--although he is deprived of hearing--can nevertheless understand, from the attitudes and gestures of the speakers, the nature of their discussion. (Leonardo da Vinci. The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci. 593). Thus in this research I wondered what is nonverbal expression's characterization in various art styles and chose for that epochs passed long ago: ancient Egyptian tomb painting, art of India, Chinese painting, Japanese prints, and some European art styles: Greek vase painting, Roman frescos and mosaics, art of the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, Baroque, and Neoclassicism. Why did I took ancient art, but not contemporary? For a will to no violate of the rights secured by a copyright in way of illustration of thesis.
The most mysterious culture of ancient Egypt having age over five thousands years interested researches of all later periods. Built for the yen to overcome time and death pyramids with tombs of pharaohs confound human minds till now. Wall painting of those tombs reached us through millenniums untouched by sun rays, wars, and vandals. That is why I have chosen Egyptian tomb painting for this research. Egyptian oracles and architects formed canon, and artists had to obey its rules when they created sculptures, inscribed or painted. Besides determination of proportions canon gave instructions for personages' postures. How personage was more highborn, more schematic was one's figure. Artists simultaneously showed schematic images of gods or pharaohs, in less schematics people commonalty, and animals were depicted in highly realistic manner. In Fig.2 side view breast of harpist on the contrary seems wholly realistically. Completely atypical for Egyptian art image of two musicians with faces shown from the front in Fig.3, because musicians belonged to lower class and they were pictured out of canon. Main feature of Egyptian poses' firstly striking the eye is strange torsions of bodies. Face shown in profile, shoulders and breast from the front, legs and feet in profile again (Fig.1). In this same manner they depicted some flying birds. Such posture we may identify with anatomical position modified a bit.
Click on image for article on Egyptian art
Goddess Neith. XIX dynasty. Polychrome relief. Valley of the Queens. Deir the-Medina. Thebes Western. Harpist. XVIII dynasty. Tomb of Nalt Sheikh Abd the-Qurna. Thebes Western. Musicians. Toward 1370 to. C. XVIII Dynasty. Painting on stucco. Tomb of Nebamún. Dra Abul Naga. British Museum. London. England. Head's turning fully away to one side also is not applied for images of mummies what can signify being of body torsion a quality of living persons. Egyptian posture arm cross is met not often and has its specific touches: the cross is not deep, only wrists are crossed; hands hold the symbols of power. It is not a comfortable position for relaxing the arms, it needs of some strain. Therefore it represents aside of a defensive barrier sign of power. Detail of The deceased doing a tribute to Osiris enthroned. Painting on board stuccowork. Eslienzo of a singer of Amón. Egyptian museum. Cairo. Display arm show is frequent, but it has nothing in common with sexuality or competition like it describes in contemporary psychology or with vanity. Without any doubts naked arm show related firstly with hot Egyptian climate. That display carries seriousness and represents prayer, blessing, the act of communicating with a deity, or some magic element, or ritual. Detail of wall painting The pharaoh, in formal dress, is received for Isis. XX Dynasty. Painting on lime. Tomb of Amonher-Khepchef. Valley of the Queens. Detail of Group of mourners of a procession funeral. Pose asymmetrical tonic neck reflex was not applied in Egypt though turned heads and some similar movements of arms can be associated with that gesture. In such cases figures represent archers or workers doing some work over their heads like porterage of hard things. They do not represent indication of disagreement, uncertainty, frustration, and anger. In realm of dead souls nothing to speak of emotions. Egyptian body bend has no signs of disagreement, disliking like in contemporary psychology, but it represents some working, shyness, or prayer.
Click on image for article on Indian art
Indian culture, one of most ancient cultures of the world, held our attention firstly for well known Hinduism's asana or, in other words, some manner of sitting. Partly "posture" became so regarded term with great favor exactly for this same asana used in the practice of Indian Yoga. Thus we may think in ancient India postures were highly appreciated, and it is interesting how various postures function in their art. Let us begin from stand poses. Sometimes anatomical position (a posture in which the body stands upright with arms extended by its sides, palms rotated forward, and feet resting flat upon the floor) was applied for monuments of gods, earthly princes, or some other spiritually advanced beings (Shantinath. Varaval (Sind), 1238. Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay; Parshvanath. North India, 1150. Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay; Gommateshvara. Shravanabelgola, Karnataka) (Fig.16). In that way Indian artists wanted to say how majestic and undisturbed is their representational person. Pose in Fig.16 can be associated also with haughty attitude of posture high stand display and loom. Gommateshvara. Shravanabelgola, Karnataka. The Marriage of Shiva and Parvati. Pratihara, 10th century. Etah, Uttar Pradesh. Bharat Kala Bhavan, Varanasi, India. Portrait of Gomateshwara Statue. Sacred Area. Keep Out. A Temple Guardian in Tamil Nadu. Vasudhara. Nepal, 14th century. Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay; Incarnations of Vishnu. Alagarkoil, Madurai; Five-headed Shiva. Kambittari Mandapa, Minakshi Temple; Goddess Riding a Bird. Airakkal Mandapa, Minakshi Temple; Shiva Nataraja. Minakshi Temple Museum; A Dwarapalaka (guardian or gate keeper); Goddess Saraswati in a Tanjore style painting; Vajrapani. East of inner entrance Monastery 1, Ratnagiri; Shrine Guardian. 14th century. Svayambhu Temple, Waranga. Vasudhara. Nepal, 14th century. Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay. Lovers, sculpture from a Khajuraho temple Female Figure with Attendant. Chandella, 11th century. Khajuraho. Bharat Kala Bhavan, Varanasi, India. Varaha. Gupta, Early 5th century AD. Cave 5, Udayagiri, Madhya Pradesh, India. Durga with bell. Ambika Mata temple, Jagat. Bodhisatva with a Lotus in Hand. From a Cave Painting in Ajanta. Shalabhanjika. East Gate, Sanchi; Shiva Nataraja. Chola period, 11th - 12th century. Government Museum, Madras2. Shiva Bhikshatana. Kailasanatha Temple, Kanchipuram. Examples of Indian sit postures. 1. Seated Buddha. 11th century. Ratnagiri Museum; 2. Seated Bhairava. Chaunsath Yogini Temple; 3. Brahmani. Madhya Pradesh, 11th century; 4. Bracket Figure. Cave 16, Ajanta Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay. Brahmani. Madhya Pradesh, 11th century. Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay(Fig.26.3); Avalokiteshvara. West of inner entrance Monastery 1; Ratnagiri, Balarama. Sasbahu temples, Nagda; Brahma the Infinite Spirit; Brahma. Sasbahu temples, Nagda; Emperor Babur. From a Mogul Miniature Painting; Sarasvati. Sasbahu temples, Nagda; Seated Tara. Detail from a Bodhisattva statue West of inner entrance Monastery 1, Ratnagiri Vajrapani. East of inner entrance Monastery 1, Ratnagiri; White Tara River Yamuna. South inner wall and entrance. Monastery 1, Ratnagiri. Lord Indra riding Iravat brings Parshwanatha home, much to the joy of the people. Mural from a Jain Muth, Sravanabelagola. A Dwarapalaka (guardian or gate keeper).
Click on image for article on Chinese art
Let us begin from review of stand position and in further recognition of nonverbal expressions in Chinese art let us keep such general order: appearance, face character, postures, cues, body movements, emotions, signals, group relations. Contemporary psychology distinguishes anatomical position as one among other postures occurring in everyday life, sport, mass medium, and art. It is described as an erect upright position with arms extended by body's sides, palms rotated forward. That posture can be recognized among the 7,000 life-size tomb figures of Chinese Terracotta Army, inside the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor (210–209 BC). They stood in several poses, each unique. In Fig.35 standing infantry in anatomical position can fortify impression of martial humility. Bodhisattva (or Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future). Baimasi monastery at Lyo Yang, Henan Province.
Click on image for article on Japanese prints
Ancient Japanese adopted great cultural heritage of China and turned to completely unexpected way. If Chinese are peaceful population watching over from outside danger or harm, Japanese are known as warlike nation--in some time they even represented friends of Adolf Hitler. Thus these differences in characters took place in their art too. Chinese attitude free from stress and near to meditation was changed into expressive, theatrical disposition in Japan. Japanese brought into fashion depiction of theatre artistes in role play, they oddly reprocessed one kind of art into other what gave to their prints especially wide spectrum of nonverbal expression. Japanese stand pose usually in movement, head turned to one side, torso is not erect straightly upright, arms in various positions often lifted up, face gives expressions of theatrical masks (Fig.51). Body stand position especially in the third example (Fig.51-3) can be associated with balance cue. Turn is so significant that seems some danger of fall. Yoshinobu. Detail of Takiyasha Hime. 1879; Kuniyoshi . Detail of Yui. 1844.Hirosada. 1850. Detail of Hitsotsuya and Okogome; 2. Kunisada. Detail of Seagulls. 1855; 3. Shunshi. Detail of Actors in role. Kunisada. Detail of The Spectre. 1852; 2. Kuniyoshi. Detail of Take-jo. 1848; Yoshitoshi. The Moon's Invention. 1891. Yoshitoshi. Detail of triptych The Fire God. 1885. Shogetsu. Detail of Dandelion and Shinobu. 1888. Hiroshige II & Kunisada. Detail of Crossing the river in snow. 1860; 2. Kuniteru. Detail of triptych Cooling-Off. 1891. Chikanobu. Detail of Crab Temple. 1886; 2. Yoshikuni. Detail of Actors in Role. 1822. Shogetsu. Detail of Red Plum and Tomoe Gozen. Chikashige. The Apprehension. Shunsho. Detail of The Sake Seller. 1782; 2. Fig. Yoshitoshi. Detail of Nichiren. Shuntei. Detail of July. 1898; 2.Yoshitoshi. Detail of The Tearful Farewell. Diptych. Kunisada, Detail of Koguroma. 1860; 2. Kunisada (Bijin). Detail of The Cherry Branch.1860; 3. Kunisada. Detail of The Banner. Masamitsu, Oda. Detail of O-Tsuta. Utamaro. The Cool of a Garden. Yoshitoshi. Suzaku Gate Moon. Hiroshige. Detail of triptych Rivers of the Tokaido. 1850; 2. Kunisada. Detail of The Shrine Bearer.
Click on image for article on Greek vase painting
Unique characteristic property of ancient Greek art is depiction of undressed human figure, and that approach penetrated into European art of later periods. Ancient Greeks saw human body as most beautiful and perfect object for art (Fig.75). Even their temples were built according to proportions of well set up man. Greek wall painting almost all are missing, but decorated with pictures of mythological scenes vases survived in great quantity. Beautiful limning, play of dark and light areas, good proportionality, catch of great moments of body movement were main goals of vase painters. Anakreon between eyes. Roosters by handle, plastic head on handle. Attic Black Figure, White Ground, Kyathos. Zeus, Dionysos, Amphitrite and Poseidon. Attic Red Figure, Skyphos.
Horsemen.
Attic Black Figure, Kylix. Interior: sphinx, cocks and hens, athletes, animals; 2. Herakles and the Erymanthian boar. Attic Black Figure. Paris and Helen with Aphrodite and other goddesses. Attic Red Figure, Amphoriskos.
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Unfortunate activation of volcano Vesuvius burying citizens of Pompeii was not completely negative phenomenon, because it preserved Pompeian wall painting from destructive time, and we can estimate Roman art now. Thus Romans continued Grecian tradition of depiction of beautiful human figures acting in mythological and historic scenes. Comparing with Greek vase painting we may state that Roman figures seem more thoughtful, slow, serious, finished. Faces keep these same qualities as Grecian: large eyes, straight nose, narrow mouth, and large enough jaw. Roman stand poses more static than Grecian. They contain sublimity, grace, and beauty (Fig.89). In this same example we met self touch tactile signs. The queen Phila talks with its son dressed with Macedonian military uniform, in the presence of the filólosofo Menedemos. Villa of Boscoreale Pan and Nymphs. Pompeii; Venus And Mars. House of Mars And Venus, Pompeii; 2. Detail of fresco Woman and Reading Child. Villa of Mysteries, Pompeii. Faun and Bacchant. Roman Wall Painting from the House of the Dioscuri, Pompeii. Lapis curing injuries of Aeneas. Pompeian fresco; 2. Detail of Celebration, the banquet. Fresco. Pompeii. Villa of the Mysteries. Faun and Bacchant. Roman Wall Painting from the House of the Dioscuri, Pompeii. The Sacrifice of Iphigenia. Hercules And Telephus. Basilica. Herculaneum.
Click on image for article on art of the Middle Ages
The Middle Ages were a period of prosperity of Christianity, a monotheistic system based on the Old Testament and the precept of Jesus a teacher and prophet of Nazareth. Any human problem becomes worthless in comparison with God. Corporeal beauty lost its importance, and abstract beauty of transcendent God free from clarity and distinctness started to dictate its conditions for Romanesque artists. Church art had a purpose to praise, glorify power of God and earthly persons of wealth. The second task of church art was to illustrate Bible texts that uneducated population could easier understand Christian teaching. Some ones call the Middle Ages as ages of darkness. The Middle Ages contain Romanesque and Gothic periods. Romanesque art style developed in Italy and western Europe between the Roman and the Gothic styles. Between the 12th and 16th centuries period of Gothic, an art style developed in northern France and spread throughout Europe. In the Middle Ages great role was played by influence of Byzantine art with its canon giving rules for depiction figures. Golden or yellow haloes surrounded heads of God and blessed people, exact proportions of haloes, heads and parts of faces were requested (Fig.108). Christ sits on rainbow or onto celestial sphere. Symmetric composition, knees broadly, foots close, arms on sides (Fig.108-1). Open palm shows his sincerity, appeal and trust. Narrow shoulders point to his physical weakness and vulnerability. Halo signifies his psychical strength.
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Continuing from the 14th through the middle of the 17th centuries the revival period brought a lot of new ideas and fast development of European sciences and arts. Self-reliance and human intellect gained an advantage over submissive behavior with respect to God. Cultural treasures of ancient Greece and Rome were remembered and adopted together with new values of soaked up depiction of reality. Looking at The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci we get to know Renaissance artists' interests. Besides anatomy, proportions, perspective, light and shade, they showed interest in such questions: how to pose figures, of appropriate gestures, of representing the emotions, of human body in action, etc. Therefore we may think that Renaissance artists consciously applied some approaches of nonverbal expression. Perfect knowing of anatomy let Italian artists to achieve wonderful results. In comparison with earlier epochs Renaissance artists' personages are represented in more various conditions, from more various points of view, with more various face expression. Large eyes, gaze on spectator, gaze down, sensitive lips, soft play of chiaroscuro on face and hair, etc. (Fig.123). Besides showing individual appearance of portrayed persons Renaissance artists made an effort to plug into their feelings and fragile spirit. Italians believed in wisdom and beauty. Idealization of human body and together face was one of main features of greatest representatives of rebirth epoch like Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Tiziano, and others.
Click on image for article on Baroque art
In the 17th century the Late Renaissance or Mannerism was changed by more realistic, more emotional and simpler baroque with its developers Caravaggio, Bernini, Carracci, Rubens, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Velázquez, and others. Hot and friendly atmosphere of feast scenes, soft bodies of portly men and stout women with joyful enthusiasm vivaciously twist in curling up spaces of baroque pictures (Fig.145). Men and women bodies beautiful for their liveliness and joy. Fatness was identified with beauty, thinness with ugliness. Stand of personages unconstrained, unembarrassed, relaxed. In group compositions especially liked touch cue -- embrace. Baroque personages are less refined than Greek, Roman, or of the Renaissance, and that let them laugh boisterously, smile, cry, and show other contorted facial expressions. Richness of grimaces characteristic especially for art of the Netherlands and Holland where middle-classes grew faster, and secular art was in great demand (Fig.146-1). Another kind of smile, a bit rueful, was showed by Spanish painter Murillo having a turn to sentimentality (Fig.146-2). Self touch tactile sign is frequent -- women touch their faces with hands, one from them hiding her smile (Fig.146-2). From the Renaissance posture arm cross came to Baroque painting. These same qualities remained. Heroes gracefully cross not arms, but wrists. That posture fits well for extremely dramatic scenes (Fig.147-1, Fig.147-2). Together with great demand in secular portraits arm cross appeared in portraits (Frans Hals, The Fisher Boy). Arm cross posture contains also self touch tactile sign -- hands touch breast or one hand touches other. Girolamo Campagna. Paul Bril Jacopo Chimenti Ottavio Miseroni Died Giovanni Battista Paggi Lodovico Carracci Antonio Tempesta Bartolomeo Cesi Alessandro Maganza Cristoforo Stati Agostino Carracci Bernardo Castello Pietro Tacca Hendrick Goltzius Lodovico Cigoli Enea Talpino Bartolommeo Carducci Annibale Carracci Adriaen Collaert Belisario Corenzio Kerstiaen de Keuninck Domenico Robusti Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger Tobias Verhaecht Pietro Bernini Orazio Gentileschi Francesco Vanni Hendrick Cornelisz. Vroom Joos de Momper II Nicolas Cordier Jacques de Gheyn II Hendrick de Keyser I Camillo Mariani Francisco Ribalta Jan Saenredam Georg Flegel Michiel Jansz. Miereveld Ventura Salimbeni Jan Bruegel the Elder Juan Martinez Montanez Frans Pourbus the Younger Denys van Alsloot Hendrik de Clerck Francesco Curradi Abel Grimmer Jan van Ravesteyn Aegidius Sadeler II Caravaggio Antiveduto Gramatica Jacob Matham Paulus Moreelse Jan H. Muller Giovanni Baglione Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder Hendrik Hondius the Elder Abraham Janssens Inigo Jones Morazzone Bastiaen Vrancx Giulio Cesare Procaccini Hendrick van Balen Eugenio Cajes Giovanni Battista Crespi Floris van Dijck Jacob Hogers Stefano Maderno Master Jacomo Master of the Annunciation to the Shepherds Master of the Procession Pedro Nunez del Valle Guido Reni Tommaso Salini Jeronimus Spengler Swiss Glass Tanzio da Varallo Joan Valet Giovanni Bilivert Guillaume Dupre Gregorio Fernandez Cornelis Galle I Lionello Spada Paul Van Somer David Vinckboons Gian Battista Viola Cristofano Allori Giacomo Cavedone Peter Paul Rubens Alessandro Tiarini Adam Willaerts Francesco Albani Orazio Borgianni Giovanni Battista Caracciolo
Click on image for article on Neoclassical art
Art style of Neoclassicism changed Rococo, the latest modification of Baroque style. Like in the Renaissance eyes of artists were turned to the grandness and nobility of ancient Grecian and Roman art. The conjunction of the American and French revolutions with period of Neoclassical Art gave for art style heroic and severe features. For us (analyzing nonverbal expressions in art) neoclassicism is interesting chiefly by its unemotional form and rational appliance of approaches of pure nonverbal communication in visual arts. Naturalism combined with idealization characteristic for Neoclassic bodies. Body is in oppositional state than relaxation. Intent hero prepared himself in any moment for fight (Fig.168). Intention cue can be called one of main cues met in Neoclassicism. Neoclassic non emotionalism also seen in facial expression of personages (Fig.169) has its particularities different from blank face with the unchanging facial expression like it is in schizophrenia. Neoclassic moderate unflinching faces lightly smiles, eyes look sprightly with interest (David. Portrait of the Marquise d-Orvilliers; David. Portrait of Francois Buron; David. Portrait of Madame Seriziat). Posture arm cross frequently used for secular pictures, especially portraits. That posture obtained form of full arm cross, not wrists or hands like in epochs of the Renaissance and Baroque. But grace remained. Looking at examples below we can perceive that arm cross sooner was an element of gracefulness of figure, and less as posture of self-comforting, self-stimulating posture, unconsciously used to alleviate anxiety and social stress as it is described in contemporary psychology (Fig.170, Fig. 171).
Results. Go to Result page. After analyzing of ten art styles we can summarize the main ideas in the paper into characterization of change and development of some nonverbal expressions most frequently met in visual arts as follows: Body stand. Main feature of Egyptian poses' firstly striking the eye is strange torsions of body: face shown in profile, shoulders and breast from the front, legs and feet in profile again. If Egyptian masculine and feminine heroes were thin, strong and manlike, Indian ones pleasingly plump, with especially fat femur part. Chinese stand poses often express submission and humility. Japanese stand pose usually in movement, head turned to one side, torso is not erect straightly upright, arms in various positions often lifted up. Roman stand poses more static than Grecian. They contain sublimity, grace and beauty. Baroque stand of personages unconstrained, unembarrassed. Naturalism combined with idealization characteristic for Neoclassic bodies. Facial beauty. The most characteristic feature of Egyptian face is its display in profile, eye from the front. Indian facial beauty contains properties like fatness, wrinkleless, full lips, large eyes, youthful. Chinese personages' facial beauty is defined by Eastern Asian ethnic features--narrow eyes, high eyebrows, wide enough and short nose, wide cheekbones, not wide mouth. Japanese facial beauty is defined by fashions of artiste masks expressing several psychological states. Laconically drawn Grecian vase figures characterized by liveliness, joie de vivre. Sketchy faces with large eyes look to us a bit naive and in astonishment. Roman faces keep these same qualities as Grecian: large eyes, straight nose, narrow mouth, but large enough jaw. Golden or yellow haloes surrounded heads of God and blessed people in the Middle Ages, exact proportions of haloes, heads and parts of faces were applied. Besides showing individual appearance of portrayed persons Renaissance artists made an effort to plug into their feelings and fragile spirit. Italians believed in wisdom and beauty. Idealization of human body and together face was one of main features of greatest representatives of rebirth epoch. Liveliness and joy characteristic for faces of Baroque personages. In Neoclassicism Greek and Roman properties were exploited.
Copyright © Jurate Macnoriute
