Idea: Posture

I have been looking at the stance of my models and I, and how simple movements can make a large impact. In my first images, I wanted the models to be rigid with their feet together and their free arms to be at their sides. This helped give the entranced feeling and ritualistic look. When I shot the images where I was standing in the water, it was late, I was tired, and the bottom was soft and unstable. Tom could tell that I was tired from my body language and said it added to the picture. He suggested I look at Greek sculpture.

Key Quotes:

“The point is that for every situation there must be two elements to body language, the delivery of the message and the reception of the message.”

Julius Fast

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/126391/Body-Language---JULIUS-FAST

“Introspective and expressive body awareness are both faculties of their own, varying among individuals like any other talents, but, at the same time, they tend to go together.”

Cecilia Ryding

http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.vcu.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&hid=11&sid=902f8066-9cb2-4265-a29a-932699cfd484%40sessionmgr4

“Body movement is seen as interdependent with linguistics, and with, tactile, olfactory, gustatory, and proprioceptive systems. Each of these senses receives information, and puts it in context. The matter is complicated by two factors: the context in which channeled information is put is also generated by the very information received- living is feedback and cross-referencing.”

Richard Schechner

http://www.jstor.org.proxy.library.vcu.edu/stable/1144846?seq=4&Search=yes&term=kinesics&list=hide&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dkinesics%26gw%3Djtx%26acc%3Don%26prq%3Dbody%2Blanguage%2BAND%2Bart%26hp%3D25%26wc%3Don&item=1&ttl=938&returnArticleService=showFullText&resultsServiceName=null

Annotated Bibliography

Hallett, C.H. “The Origins of the Classical Style in Sculpture.”   Journal of Hellenic

            Studies, 1986. Pages 71-84. JStor. Web. 27 Oct. 2010. <http://www.jstor.org.proxy.library.vcu.edu/stable/629643?seq=1&Search=yes&term=kouros&term=contrapposto&list=hide&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcontrapposto%2BAND%2Bkouros%26gw%3Djtx%26acc%3Don%26prq%3Dcontrapposto%26hp%3D25%26wc%3Don&item=5&ttl=19&returnArticleService=showFullText&resultsServiceName=null>

This article provides a brief summary on classical sculpture. I focused on the element of posture while reading it. Kouros is a term meaning male youth. This style of sculpture was popular during the Archaic period in Greece. These sculptures had a very rigid pose. The figures stood straight up with their feet together and hands at their sides. They referenced the god Apollo and according to some, were meant to represent mankind rather than a specific male. Their eyes are straightforward and their expression is quite blank. This stance seemed unrealistic and later “contrapposto” evolved. These figures had one leg, the engaged leg, carrying the weight of the sculpture and a free leg, which was bent. It was much more natural looking than kouros. The body doesn’t look so mechanical and stiff. It also provides tension, as the figure is shifting weight from one leg to another.

http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/Arts/Kouros/VolomandraKouros.jpg

http://surveryofart.blogspot.com/2009_10_01_archive.html