Obelisk

The first vision in book two of Hildegard von Bingen’s masterwork, Scivias. This vision focused on Adam and Christ, where Adam fails to pick a flower representing “the sweet precept of obedience". In a radical revision of Genesis, instead of Satan tempting Adam with the knowledge of good and evil, this knowledge was a gift from God that Adam ignored. Redemption follows represented by the stars of the patriarchs, the prophets, John the Baptist and finally Christ himself. read more

Scivias 2.1: The Redeemer, Hildegard von Bingen

The Nude in Art

Getting out the skin

How do you capture the human ideal—the best of our courage, poise, grace and dignity? With the naked human body, of course. While nakedness is part and parcel with human experience, when bathing, changing, and having sex, the nude in art claims to present the naked body as allegory, showcasing physical perfection as a reflection of spiritual or intellectual perfection. read more

Contrapposto

Body, language

In 1967 the UCLA professor of psychology Albert Mehrabian claimed that 55 percent of human communication is through body language alone. It’s an often misquoted study, but the idea that posture means something is undeniably true. And unsurprisingly, the ancient Greeks got there first. read more

Death in Art

Life's only guarantee

Memento Mori, vanitas, mortality. Death is one of the most pervasive themes in art history. While many artworks celebrate afterlives in heaven or hell, death is most often referenced as a grim reminder of numbered days, and a powerful motivator to live well while you can. Every culture has rituals surrounding death, appearing in artwork as icons and colors. read more

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