contrapposto

(noun)

The standing position of a human figure where most of the weight is placed on one foot, and the other leg is relaxed.  The effect of contrapposto in art makes figures look very naturalistic. 

Related Terms

  • strut
  • Sistine Chapel
  • sprezzatura
  • loggia
  • lost wax

(noun)

The position of a figure whose hips and legs are twisted away from the direction of the head and shoulders.

Related Terms

  • strut
  • Sistine Chapel
  • sprezzatura
  • loggia
  • lost wax

Examples of contrapposto in the following topics:

  • Sculpture in the Greek High Classical Period

    • The athletes are shown in contrapposto stances.
    • The Diadumenos also stands in contrapposto, although his movement seems more forward and stable than that of the Discophoros.
    • The Discophoros and Diadumenos, along with the Doryphoros, demonstrate the flexibility of composition based on the Canon and the innate liveliness produced by contrapposto postures.
    • His body holds a contrapposto pose; one leg bears his weight, while the other is relaxed.
  • Marble Sculpture and Architecture in the Greek Early Classical Period

    • Part of this illusion is created by a stance known as contrapposto.
    • This contrapposto position animates the figure through the relationship of tense and relaxed limbs.
    • He is most renowned for his treatise on the male nude, known as the Canon, which describes the ideal, aesthetic body based on mathematical proportions and Classical conventions such as contrapposto.
    • The figure has a Severe-style face and a contrapposto stance.
    • This sculpture demonstrates how the use of contrapposto creates an S-shaped composition.
  • Michelangelo

    • Veins bulge out of his lowered right hand, but his body is in a relaxed contrapposto pose, and he carries his sling casually thrown over his left shoulder.
    • In the Renaissance, contrapposto poses were thought of as a distinctive feature of antique sculpture.
  • Raphael

    • For example, Raphael's Saint Catherine of Alexandria (1507) borrows from the contrapposto pose of da Vinci's Leda and the Swans.
    • Saint Catherine of Alexandria (1507) borrows from the contrapposto pose of da Vinci's Leda.
  • Oil Painting

    • There is no clear theme to The Tempest, which depicts a semi-nude woman suckling a baby while a man stands in contrapposto.
  • Sculpture in the High Renaissance

    • The work is nude, in emulation of Greek and Roman sculptures, and the David stands in a contrapposto pose.
  • Mannerist Sculpture

    • It is similar, but not identical, to contrapposto, and often features figures in spiral poses.
  • Stelae in the Greek High Classical Period

    • He stands in a contrapposto pose with a cocked head, reaching for the flask held by the young attendant.
  • Bronze Sculpture in the Greek Early Classical Period

    • Their bodies are idealized and appear dynamic, with freed limbs, a contrapposto shift in weight, and turned heads that imply movement.
  • Imperial Sculpture in the Early Roman Empire

    • He wears military attire and stands erect in a dynamic contrapposto pose with his arm raised.
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