Finally, the collection contains several de Chirico works. For example, another well-known de Chirico painting is Gare Montparnasse (The Melancholy of Departure).
6 Art-Historical Poses You Should Know
Try to recreate the pose of Michelangelo’s David (1501–04) or Botticelli’s Birth of Venus (c. 1486). Or recline on a chaise-longue to mimic Édouard Manet’s Olympia (1863). You’ll find that these gestures can feel quite different than they look—and that some of art history’s most famous poses are altogether impossible to reenact.
Yet, regardless of their anatomical accuracy, certain classic poses are assumed again and again by the figures of Western art history. According to this visual vocabulary, the placement of an arm or a leg can transform an anonymous figure into an emperor, a goddess, or even an eternal soul. Below you’ll find six of art history’s most popular gestures, along with the stories behind this ancient body language.
Composite
Nebamun hunting in the marshes, fragment of a scene from the tomb-chapel of Nebamun, Late 18th Dynasty-around 1350 BC
British Museum
The ancient Egyptians represented the body in an impossible twist, combining multiple perspectives into a single stance. In this composite pose, used in reliefs, stelae, and wall paintings, the torso faces forward, while the head, hips, and legs are shown completely in profile. And even though the figure’s face looks out to the side, its single, almond-shaped eye stares directly at the viewer.
Why contort the body this way? One reason is practical. Noses and feet are easier to draw from the side, while eyes and shoulders are easier to draw straight-on. Go ahead and try it—you’ll find that this is one of the simplest poses to copy on paper, even though it’s among the hardest to recreate with your body.
But these contortions also had spiritual implications. The ancient Egyptians believed that souls needed earthly homes, such as sculpted sarcophagi or painted portraits, to survive after death. Designed to convey this sense of eternal life, the composite pose presents figures as unwavering, motionless, and altogether timeless.
Contrapposto
Michelangelo Buonarroti
David, 1501-1504
Galleria dell’Accademia
Genevieve Gaignard
Compton Contrapposto, 2016
Shulamit Nazarian
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While the composite pose portrayed eternal stillness, the Greek-invented contrapposto (or counterpose) captured the body in motion. Figures in contrapposto appear to be caught in the middle of taking a step. They lean all of their body weight on one leg (sometimes called the “engaged” leg), while their other, more relaxed leg bends at the knee. The torso, shoulders, and head tilt away from the straightened leg, activating the body in a dynamic twist.
Contrapposto could fool viewers into thinking that a hunk of marble or a stretch of canvas was a living, breathing human being—and this sense of effortless naturalism captivated the Greeks. Once you know the pose, you’ll spot it everywhere, from Renaissance masterpieces like Michelangelo’s David to the contemporary photographer Genevieve Gaignard’s Compton Contrapposto (2016).
But while contrapposto might look natural, it surely doesn’t feel natural. To prove this, the conceptual artist Bruce Nauman tried to remain in this historical pose while moving through a narrow passageway in his 60-minute video performance Walk with Contrapposto (1968). The result? An awkward, constricting limp—far from the effortlessness the Greeks intended.
17 Must-See Artworks in the Museum of Modern Art in New York
Writing a short article about the MoMA’s top art is not easy. It is not just a challenge to narrow this world-class collection of must-see artworks to a short list. In fact, the biggest hurdle involves logistics. For instance, the museum cannot display the entire collection simultaneously with so much top art.
Some people call the constant rotation of exhibited works “the MoMA shuffle.” So if you are reading this long after publication, don’t worry. You can always check out the MoMA’s impressive online catalog for updates about what’s on view.
A few words about this remarkable museum are in order. Director Glenn D. Lowry tells us the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) opened its doors in November 1929. The MoMA is the brainchild of three “founding women,” Lillie P. Bliss, Mary Quinn Sullivan, and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller.
Scholar Bernard Arnualt tells us they entrusted the museum’s creative direction to its first director, Alfred H. Barr Jr. What began with a donation of 8 prints and 1 drawing now numbers nearly 200,000 paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints, photographs, media, architectural models and more!
Moreover, the museum weathered many storms in its early years and beyond. For example, it opened around the onset of the Great Depression. While the museum has moved around and changed in many other ways since 1929, it remains one of the world’s premier modern art collections.
Pro Tip: The museum exhibits many all-star names and artworks on floors 4 and 5. My tip for tackling the collection is to start from the top and work your way down from the fifth floor. From there, you’ll be sure not to miss any of MoMA’s top art currently on display when you visit.
Boy in a Red Vest
Paul Cézanne | 1888-1890 | Oil on canvas | Floor 5, 502 The Alfred H. Barr, Jr. Galleries
Museum Director Glenn D. Lowry explains that one pressing question faced by MoMA organizers was where to start chronologically. Lowry says MoMA founders settled on art dating from 1880 or 50 years earlier.
As art historian Rebecca Roberts explains, the museum’s first major exhibition included many giants of modern art, including Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh, Georges Seurat, and Paul Gauguin.
Indeed, few names in the museum’s early collection rivaled French artist Paul Cézanne. According to scholar Kiko Aebi, Cézanne drew inspiration from both Impressionist contemporaries and the world-class art on display in the Louvre.
Our first entry, Cézanne’s painting Boy in a Red Vest, boasts a fascinating lineage. For instance, art historian Sarah McFadden says this Cézanne work once held pride of place in none other than Claude Monet’s personal collection. In fact, Monet believed not only was Boy in a Red Vest the best painting he owned but that “Cézanne is the greatest of us all.” Imagine the social media buzz that comment would make today!
The Starry Night
Vincent van Gogh | 1889 | Oil on canvas | Floor 5, 502 The Alfred H. Barr, Jr. Galleries
Art historian Helen M. Franc tells us early acquisitions and exhibitions of leading modern European artists like Vincent van Gogh helped establish MoMA as a world-class repository of modern art.
Indeed, few works in the collection are instantly recognized as van Gogh’s The Starry Night. Here van Gogh depicts both an observed and imaginary impression of Saint-Rémy de Provence in France. Despite battling mental illness at the mental hospital of Saint-Rémy, Franc tells us van Gogh produced roughly 150 paintings in one year!
Moreover, scholar Annemarie Iker says van Gogh included actual astronomical events in this artwork. For example, the planet Venus is visible to the right of the giant cypress tree. Iker notes that Venus was visible in the night sky during the Spring of 1889.
