Description

Immediate dispatch from Somerset. Book in excellent unread/unused condition. See images. Fantastic book.

About the book >.>.> The articulated human figure made of wat or wood was a common tool in artistic practice in Europe from the 16th century. Its indefatigable limbs and silent compliance enabled the artist to study anatomical proportion fix a pose at will and perfect the depiction of drapery and clothing. In the course of the 19th century however the mannequin (or ‘lay figure in English) gradually emerged from the studio to become a subject in its own right at first humorously then in more troubling ways playing on the unnerving psychological presence of a figure that was realistic yet unreal lifelike yet lifeless Despite the plethora of human effigies and avatars both virtual and real that inhabit our 21st century existence the mannequin continues to fascinate and disturb an empty vessel for our fears and fantasies. Silent Partners explores the changing use of these figures from an inconspicuous piece of studio equipment to the highly charged erotic imagery of the Surrealists. It locates the artist’s mannequin in the context of an expanding universe of substitute human figures such as dolls automata wax figures and shop window dummies that became ever more lifelike and visible from the mid-19th century. It shows how technological developments in the fabrication of the mannequin and its kin made possible growing levels of realism and examines how artists authors photographers and filmmakers responded to its uncanny and highly suggestive potential. (MP)