Tête d'expression was a traditional art-school exercise involving "a study of the face intended to evoke a particular state of mind: melancholy, for instance, obstinacy, shock, or boredom." (Source)
(Expression of the face, young suppliant girl)
It was also the name for a competition held at the French Academy.
Greek statues expressed emotion mainly with the pose of the body, but the officials of the Academy didn't want to neglect the expressive potential of the head itself. The exercise was carried out not only with drawings and engravings, but also with sculpture.
De 35 Têtes D'expression by Louis Leopold Boilly
Source of the initial quote was The Art of Rivalry: Four Friendships, Betrayals, and Breakthroughs in Modern Art
3 comments:
Wo is the author of that bust or sculpted head? It looks much more modern than a greek sculpture.
Yes, Houdon it?
The last image of Louis Boilly reminds me of the Flashed Face distortion effect.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flashed_face_distortion_effect
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