The Art of Attractiveness. The History of Bodily Beauty from the Renaissance to the Present Day

In the book by Georges Vigarello, a professor at the University of Paris V and the author of many works on the representation and cultural history of the body, the change in the concept of bodily beauty in Europe is... traced — from the Renaissance to the present day. What body was considered beautiful, and what was considered ugly? What body care products were valued in different epochs? How did pop culture and the promotion of a healthy lifestyle influence the perception of beauty? How durable is the ideal, for which sometimes fates are broken? Using material from visual arts, literature, medical and aesthetic treatises, press, cinema, and advertising, Georges Vigarello constructs an engaging excursion that allows us to answer these questions.