THE DISEMBODIED HEAD: A MAJOR THEME IN EUROPEAN ART FROM 1885 TO 1905. (VOLUMES I AND II) (SYMBOLIST).
Item
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Title
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THE DISEMBODIED HEAD: A MAJOR THEME IN EUROPEAN ART FROM 1885 TO 1905. (VOLUMES I AND II) (SYMBOLIST).
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Identifier
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AAI8423063
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identifier
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8423063
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Creator
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GRACE, TRUDIE.
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Contributor
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Rose-Carol Washton Long
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Date
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1984
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Art History
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Abstract
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It is the contention of this study that, between 1885 and 1905, many European artists (mainly Symbolists), working in a variety of styles and mediums, depicted the disembodied head in order to allude to one or more aspects of the nonphysical plane of human existence. Among these aspects were the inner self, genius, spirituality, and experiences involving a loss of awareness of or contact with the physical self and the material world, including functioning in a superior state of consciousness. This study also contends that the influences on the appearance of the disembodied head used in the manner described (termed allusive head here) were certain major elements of Symbolist thought and the following subjects of considerable interest to the general public at the end of the nineteenth century: physiognomy, phrenology, spiritism, occultism, and psychology.;Some of the better-known artists included in this study are Redon, Carriere, Vallotton, Munch, Gauguin, Levy-Dhurmer, Delville, and Rodin. Among the lesser-known ones are Alexandre Seon, Jean Carries, Rupert Carabin, and Alice Pike Barney.;Chapter I defines the differences between the allusive head and other heads in art, including masks and most severed heads. The next chapter deals with the influences on the allusive head's appearance and contains a section on Symbolist literary works that also treat many aspects of man's nonphysical plane.;Chapters III through VIII discuss the works themselves. Self-portraits were done by Carriere, Vuillard, and Gauguin, among others. Portraits of literary Symbolist include ones of Mallarme and Rimbaud. Portraits of other creative figures of the nineteenth century depict such individuals as Dostoyevsky, Hugo, Ibsen, and Beethoven. The theme also extended to portraits of nonartists. Heads of the spiritually oriented figures Christ, St. John the Baptist, Orpheus, and Parsifal are also discussed, as are anonymous heads, among them souls.;Chapter IX examines the theme after 1905 and contrasts the allusive heads under study with heads by Expressionist and Surrealist artists. The concluding chapter summarizes the significance of the theme, especially with respect to both its artistic and cultural contexts.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
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Program
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Art History
