Every few days someone will send me something that has piqued their interest. It might be an image or an article or a website and I wonder how best to include it in the blog. The word seems to have appeared in English, for the first time in the 17 th century, to describe such a composite dish. Among other things, this Renaissance Frenchman was a writer, physician, monk, humanist and Greek scholar. When he was not treating plague victims, he was writing satire and he is regarded as one of the great writers of bawdy jokes, songs and the grotesque.
To be Rabelaisian means to be outrageous, raunchy, crude, absolutely stubborn in matters of truth, and relentlessly against hypocrisy.
With respect to Bracquemond, of note is the decorative arts dinner service he was involved with. It was said to have been the first expression of japonisme in France and the NGV has five pieces from this service generously donated in by Merv Keehn and Sue Harlow. The Bracquemond etching features the back view of five figures, from different walks of life, with their arms linked striding off on an adventure together. This is a rather unusual perspective although, as a compositional device, one of the first artists to use it was Giotto in the 14 th century to establish depth of field.
This perspective creates a paradox β it simultaneously invites the viewer into the landscape as the faceless subject, but also reminds them of the border between themselves and the scene.
Since the German Romantics embraced this view, it has appeared across art movements and in disparate media. In contemporary photography it is used to create mystery, drama, suspense, yearning, and voyeurism.
