Anatomy
[Toronto]: Lumiere Press, 1993. Octavo, 23.6 x 15.9 cm. Cased in quarter natural linen and grey, ochre, silver, and black French marbled paper over boards. Printed paper title-label to the spine; the label is decorated with an upper case Phi in gold. Plain taupe endpapers. Housed in a matching taupe Fabriano paper covered slipcase. pp. [9, plus ll. 1: taupe paper leaf bearing the frontispiece] 10- 55, [5]. A fine copy. The text was set in Linotype Optima and printed on mouldmade Mohawk Molino paper. The frontispiece, Millenium [sic] (1985), is a gelatin-silver print made from the original negative. The text comprises two essays by Torosian: Galatea & Pygmalion and Part Two. Between the essays are twelve duotone nudes by Torosian. The duotones were printed on varnished Warren’s Lustro Dull Cream paper and tipped-in. From an edition of 150 numbered copies, this being number 49. Signed in ink by Torosian on the colophon page. Item #269
“My work on Anatomy was propelled along by artistic compulsion and a belief in the prospect of a renascence of the nude in photography. I pinned my convictions on Wittgenstein’s rapturous insight that ‘The human body is the best picture of the human soul.’ By analogy and historical juxtaposition I’ve tried in this chronicle to illuminate the evolution of Anatomy, to walk my theories about, the better for the viewer to explore the area of uncertainty. Kenneth Clark wrote, ‘If theory is a true reflection of sensibility in intellectual terms, it can give a painter’s work an added tautness and coherency.’ Theory can also be a form of catharsis, a method of concluding the work so that the artist can move on to the next plateau of development. And it is a way of creating order for that which has so long been a journey of intuition and mystery.” — Michael Torosian.
Price: $325.00