Author Description

The Visible Vagina is a publication that reproduces works of art that were designed to make visible a portion of the female anatomy that is generally considered taboo―too private and intimate for public display. If shown at all, this part of a woman’s body is usually presented in an abject fashion, generally within the context of pornography, intended, in almost all cases, for the exclusive pleasure of men. The goal of this publication to remove these prurient connotations, implicit even in works of art, ever since the pudendum was prudishly covered by a fig leaf. The book traces this motif in art history from prehistoric to modern times. It includes an introduction by Francis M. Naumann and David Nolan (organizers of the exhibition for which this publication originally served as a catalogue), as well as a highly informative and provocative essay by Anna C. Chave, Professor of Contemporary Art and Theory at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. The book is a 128 pages and fully illustrated with works of art by 68 artists.