A history of English sexual morals / by Ivan Bloch ; translated by William H. Forstern.

  • Iwan Bloch
Date:
1936
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: A history of English sexual morals / by Ivan Bloch ; translated by William H. Forstern. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    661/700 (page 631)
    CHAPTER XIX EROTICISM IN ART 'he principal task of Art being the representation of Lumanity, its activities and emotions, it has always devoted ue attention to human love both in the physical and in the deal sense. The question whether the purely sexual aspect of love may >e made the subject of artistic treatment must be answered n the affirmative, provided that the purely sexual aspect is nade subservient to a higher artistic concept. Such a con- cept, in turn, is only possible if the object represented is considered from the general human viewpoint, the universal viewpoint, without regard to time and space, and if in the process of execution the physical side is sublimated and, to a, certain extent, subjugated. Sex is one of the most grateful subjects for humorous representation, for here the sublime indeed borders on the ridiculous, though this is due to the fact that sex is basically sublime. The most brilliant representative of the humorous concept of sex in Art was Thomas Rowlandson. The frequent con- nection of lust with mysticism, which we have seen mani- fested in certain sexual perversions, was translated into terms of Art by Felicien Rops. And, finally, works of this type may also express the moral and moralising standpoint, which is the case with Hogarth's works. The history of obscene and erotic works of art dates back to primitive times. The erotic sculptures of the primitive [631]