Thomas Eakins : Art, Medicine, and Sexuality in Nineteenth-Century Philadelphia

by Amy Werbel

• ISBN13: 9780300116557
• ISBN10: 0300116551
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Trade Book
• Copyright: 2007-06-29
• Publisher: Yale University Press

Summary

The life and work of Thomas Eakins (18441916), America's most celebrated portrait painter, have long generated heated controversy. In this fresh and deeply researched interpretation of the artist, Amy Werbel sets Eakins in the context of Philadelphia's scientific, medical, and artistic communities of the 19th century, and considers his provocative behavior in the light of other well-publicized scandals of his era. This illuminating perspective provides a rich, alternative account of Eakins and casts entirely new light on his renowned paintings. Eakins' modern critics have described his artistic motivations and beliefs as prurient and even pathological. Werbel challenges these interpretations and suggests instead that Eakins is best understood as an artist and teacher devoted to an exacting and profound study of the human body, to equality for women and men, and to middle-class meritocratic and Quaker philosophies.

Author Biography

Amy Werbel is professor of fine arts at St. Michael's College, Colchester, Vermont.

Table of Contents

From Benjamin Franklin to Thomas Eakins	p. 1
The Agnew clinic, the Gross Clinic, the Crucifixion, and swimming	p. 28
Body casts and "anatomical eyes"	p. 53
Art, pornography, freak shows, medical pictures, and the guilty pleasures of photography in nineteenth-century Philadelphia	p. 86
Scandalous exposures	p. 126
Conclusion : Thomas Eakins' family values	p. 150
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.