The new exhibit at the Palmer Museum of Art contends breathing is not only vital to life, but artwork as well.
Breathing Motions: Figure Studies by Arthur B. Davies features primarily female nudes. The pieces, which include lithography among other forms, literally visualize the act of breathing in connection with art, exercise and dance, said Robin Veder, the guest co-curator for the exhibit. Veder will give a gallery talk about the exhibit at 12:10 p.m. today in Palmer.
"He thought all great art of all time should show breathing, so he was experimenting with different ways to bring his figures to life," Veder said of Davies.
Davies' emphasis on the visualization of breathing, his "lift of inhalation" theory, appears in his artwork through a number of recurring poses, Veder said.
Many of the pieces have ancient Greek influences because Davies believed the Greeks were the first to depict breathing in their art, she said.
Leo Mazow, curator for the exhibition, said Davies was heavily influenced by Francois Delsarte, a French reformist, and the movement he led.
"He was on a sort of social reform crusade -- he combined mythology and artwork with modern art, dance, gymnastics and calisthenics," Mazow said.
Many of the dancers who posed for Davies, including Isadora Duncan, were also greatly influenced by Delsarte, according to a pamphlet distributed by Palmer.
"Many of the innovative dancers of the early 1900s were very interested in dance connected to breathing," Veder said. "Some of these dancers posed for him."
The exhibit incorporates the many mediums Davies used, Mazow said, adding Davies, a prolific printmaker, also worked with lithography, etching and mezzotint.
Davies is usually associated with his role as one of the main organizers of the Armory Show in 1913 -- the first comprehensive exhibition of modern European and American art in the United States, Mazow said.
He is also known for exhibiting with a group called "The Eight" in response to the exclusionary tendencies of the National Academy of Design at the time, he said.
"He is usually talked about in mysterious, anti-modern, enigmatic terms," Mazow said. "I hope this exhibition dispels some of the enigma we associate with Arthur B. Davies."
