Erotica History

Erotica History
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Fernande (1910-1917) French postcard by Jean Agélou Erotica is (in a broad sense) any literary or artistic work that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing but (in a strict sense) is not generally considered to be pornographic.
ESTIMATE £7,000-10,000. Pornography and erotica predated the camera - blushing art historians may under pressure confess that Titian's Venus of Urbino is clearly masturbating - but the new image-capture technology of the nineteenth century increased the supply and demand for both.
Smith contended that erotica , at first, was mainly written by men for men, with females being the sexual object. Later, erotica written by women for women proved that they have just as many lustful desires as their male counterparts.
Historically, there have always been pockets of eroticism in art. The infamous frescoes of doomed Pompeii, for example, featured oversized erections and sex acts, and artists in India, China and...
The precise idea behind producing these erotic scenes is unknown but there may well been a religious purpose. However, they absolutely reflect the private aspect of people's lives during this period. 2000-1500 BCE, from southern Mesopotamia, Iraq. Istanbul Archaeological Museums/ Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul, Turkey. Photo © Osama S.M Amin.
Both the term erotica and pornography were first attested in the mid-19th century; erotica was used in the context of book collecting and pornography in the context of debates on prostitution, obscenity trials and prosecutions. A work solely intented for masturbatory purposes, is generally not regarded as erotic art, although exceptions exist.
The oldest image we have of two people having intercourse comes from 11,000 years ago. Currently held in the British Museum, the Ain Sakhri Lovers were discovered in a cave near Bethlehem. The 10cm tall statue is thought to come from the Natufian Culture of the ancient middle east.
Updated March 9, 2022 From Rome to India to the Americas, erotic art has always existed throughout the ancient world, proving that people have always loved sex. An ancient wine jug depicting a customer and a prostitute (a money pouch is hanging on the wall) dated between 480 and 470 BCE. Greece.Wedding Painter/Wikimedia Commons
Beginning with the Renaissance, there was a history in Europe of manufacturing erotica for the enjoyment of the elite. The text "I Modi" was a woodcut book made in the early 16th century. In Italy, erotic fine art took numerous forms, but artist Giulio Romano is most known for his iconic I Modi drawings.
Search six million images spanning more than 25,000 years of world history , from before the Stone Age to the dawn of the Space Age and find the perfect picture for your project from Granger. Register; Sign In; ... chun hua erotic 'Spring Picture' to illustrate a scene from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) erotic classic Jin Ping Mei or 'The ...
Erotica is any literary or artistic work that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing but is not generally considered to be pornographic. Erotic art may use any artistic form to depict erotic content, including painting, sculpture, drama, film or music. Erotic literature and erotic photography have become genres in their own right. Wikipedia More at Wikipedia
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Techniques for titillation: A brief history of art and eroticism
Erotic art has become an expression of the visceral, vital, subconscious power that we call desire, of which sexuality is merely one of many manifestations.
Olivier Zahm is a photographer, critic and editor-in-chief of Purple magazine.
In the history of Western art, the erotic has long been hidden, ignored or condemned.
For centuries, one had to look to mythological or even religious works for representations of the naked body, even a mere breast -- a nude Venus, goddess of love and beauty, in Ancient Rome, or Adam and Eve as symbolic representations of sin in paradise.
It's only relatively recently that erotic art has become truly transgressive in nature. Freed from the shackles of myth, religion and academia, it gives way to the fury of desire.
1 / 17 – "Erotic: Passion & Desire" at Sotheby's London
"Erotic: Passion & Desire," an exhibition at Sotheby's London, looks at representations of sex in art and design objects from ancient times to the modern day. The works will all be auctioned on Feb. 16, 2017. These are some of the highlights. Pictured: A Roman marble group of two lovers (c.1st-2nd century AD ) Credit: © Sotheby's ... Read More
Historically, there have always been pockets of eroticism in art. The infamous frescoes of doomed Pompeii, for example, featured oversized erections and sex acts, and artists in India, China and Japan have long captured explicit sex scenes freely and beautifully.
Sexuality would take hold in Europe much later, with the rise of the libertines. Eighteenth-century France saw the emergence of so-called indecent paintings from the likes of Jean-Antoine Watteau and Jean-Honoré Fragonard, as well as the proliferation of erotic etchings -- the equivalent of today's pornographic photos -- that could be easily carried and hidden under one's coat.
It was a turning point for eroticism in art, but the threat of censorship still loomed. Let's not forget that six poems from "Les Fleurs du Mal," an 1857 volume by Charles Baudelaire, were initially condemned as pornographic and banned from publication.
"Baigneuses surprises" (1930) by Camille Bombois Credit: © Sotheby's
Shortly thereafter, Edouard Manet sparked a scandal when he unveiled "Déjeuner sur l'Herbe" (1862), a painting of a picnic where a naked woman sits between two clothed men.
However, fewer than 30 years later, Gustave Rodin created "Le Baiser" ("The Kiss") -- a sculpture of two nude embracing lovers -- as an official commission for the French government.
Thus at the end of the 19th century, to borrow an expression from French philosopher Georges Batailles (author of the seminal text "Eroticism,") the "accursed share" of art -- the art that celebrates sexuality over fertility, that flouts the ideals of beauty and morality -- had taken its revenge.
Erotic art would go on to play an essential and inescapable role in the artistic revolution of the 20th century.
Paul Gaugin started his colorful Tahitian nudes in the 1890s, and Gustav Klimt and his protégé Egon Schiele led the way in Vienna in the early 1900s. Then came the paintings of Picasso, the surrealists and Balthus; the photography of Man Ray and Mapplethorpe.
"Girl and her Pussy" (1995-96) by Clive Barker Credit: © Sotheby's
Their legacy continued through the sculptures of Sarah Lucas and Paul McCarthy , Thomas Ruff's larger-than-life nudes, and perhaps most famously, Jeff Koons' "Made in Heaven" series with his former wife and muse, the porn star Cicciolina.
Art has become an expression of the visceral, vital, subconscious power that we call desire, of which sexuality is merely one of many manifestations. The experimental and seductive power of erotic art transcends mere representation. It tells another story, one that goes beyond the historical or academic, religious or mythological.
Erotic art is truly an image without context, a naked and pure image that transgresses the norm by making the private, the intimate and the sexual public, expressing the infinite power and beauty of the subconscious.
Pablo Picasso once said sexuality and art are the same thing. Perhaps he was right.
This article has been translated from French.
"Erotic: Passion & Desire" is on view at Sotheby's London until Feb. 15, 2017, and goes to auction on Feb. 16, 2017.
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Ancient art and archaeological remains have provided archaeologists and historians today with clues to how the ancients practiced their sexuality and their overall attitude toward sex. To the causal observer, it seems the ancients were more open about their sexuality then we are today. In ancient Rome there were artworks in living rooms or studies depicting erotic images of lovers performing various sexual acts and in ancient Mesopotamia mass-produced terracotta plagues would show couples having sex.
For the Romans, sex was a part of their everyday lives, state affairs, religious rites, myths, even warfare, and featured prominently in their art. One of the most famous collections of erotic art from Roman culture is the artwork featured in the secret cabinet ( gabinetto segreto ). The secret cabinet collection is now part of the Naples National Archaeological Museum . It is said when King Francis I of Naples visited with his wife and daughter in 1819 he was so shocked by the contents of the collection he had them locked away. A brick wall was even built over the doorway to keep the scenes from corrupting people.
The following are a few select images of the artwork and artifacts found in the secret cabinet collection.
This Roman fresco shows the act of making love. It was found in the bedroom (cubiculum) of the Casa del Centenario (IX 8,3) in Pompeii . 1st Century CE. Photo © Heinrich Stürzl.
Bronze ‘flying phallus’ amulet, 1st BCE. It would be hung outside a house or shop doorway to ward off evil spirits. National Archaeological Museum, Naples. Photo © Kim Traynor.
Pan copulating with goat, one of the best known objects in the Naples Museum collection. Photo © Kim Traynor.
In Mesopotamia, sex was just another aspect of life and there was no shyness, or taboo involved in it. While sex was a part of one’s personal life there were also a couple of, what we would consider, odd customs observed. For example, there was the marriage market, where women were auctioned off as brides, and a particular form of sacred prostitution. Each woman had to perform this type of prostitution at least once in her life and it involved sitting outside the temple of Ishtar ( Inanna ) and agreeing to have sex with the person who chose her. Herodotus explains this particular custom was meant to ensure the fertility and continued prosperity of the community although his interpretation, and whether this practice even existed as he described it, have been challenged.
The following images are a few select examples displaying how sex was portrayed in Mesopotamian art.
This round pottery plaque depicts various human daily activities. In the middle, a man and a woman are having sex, and on the left, a standing woman holds a young child on her shoulders. Hellenistic Period , 323-30 BCE. From Mesopotamia , modern-day Iraq. The Sulaimaniya Museum, Iraq. Photo © Osama S.M Amin.
This terracotta plaque dates back to the old Babylonian period. It depicts a male and female having sex while the woman drinks a fluid ( beer ?) from a jar through a straw. Such scenes were mass-produced in southern Mesopotamia , during the old Babylonian era. The precise idea behind producing these erotic scenes is unknown but there may well have been a religious purpose. 2000-1500 BCE, from southern Mesopotamia, Iraq. Istanbul Archeaological Museums/ Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul, Turkey . Photo © Osama S.M Amin.
This terracotta plaque dates back to the old Babylonian period. It depicts a male and female having sex in a missionary position. Such scenes were mass-produced in southern Mesopotamia during the old Babylonian era. The precise idea behind producing these erotic scenes is unknown but there may well been a religious purpose. However, they absolutely reflect the private aspect of people’s lives during this period. 2000-1500 BCE, from southern Mesopotamia, Iraq. Istanbul Archaeological Museums/ Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul, Turkey . Photo © Osama S.M Amin.
Attic ceramic kylix or drinking cup (490-480 BCE) depicting an erotic scene. The male holds a sandal, often used as an instrument for stimulation in erotic games. (Archaeological Museum, Milan). Photo © Mark Cartwright.
Roman oil lamp with erotic motif, 1st – 3rd century CE. (Altes Museum, Berlin). Photo © Carole Raddato.
Mithuna Figures, Kandariya Mahadeo temple , Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, India . From the south wall of the antarala, c. 1025 CE. Photo © Jean-Pierre Dalbera.
Jade is editor of Ancient History et cetera. She is an aspiring librarian with interests in Roman and Greek architecture, Middle Eastern culture, open access to information and digitisation as a method of preservation.

The difference between [erotica and pornography], apart from the moral/aesthetic judgement, largely rests on the intention of the person doing the "making". It is assumed that the pornographer produces pornography with the sole intention of causing people to feel sexually aroused, usually for financial gain. Erotica, however, may also have aesthetic or expressive purposes; there is less sense of the producer manipulating the feelings of the consumer, and less implication of purely financial motives. There is also a difference as regards the medium; the word "pornography" is nearly always applied to written texts, film and, primarily, photographs. One may say "an erotic statue", but probably not "a pornographic statue". --Robin Turner, Debating Pornography: Categories and Metaphors via http://neptune.spaceports.com/~words/debating.html [May 2005]

In other languages:
erotico (Spanish and Italian) -
erotik (German) -
erotique (french)

Odalisque (detail) c. 1745 - Franзois Boucher

Quer durch Europas Betten. Der erste aktuelle Sittenroman (1951)
Image sourced here.

A work solely intented for masturbatory purposes, is generally not regarded as erotic art, although exceptions exist.

Erotica and pornography are excellent tools to study the rise of new media and new technologies. Printing technology gave rise to erotic fiction and erotic engravings, photography begot erotic photography, film begot erotic film, VCR technology liberated the pornographic film from seedy theatres, the internet thrives on erotic imagery and dating services. Examples abound. Colin Wilson , for example, traces the development of the novel in relation to the human imagination and erotic fiction in his The Misfits, a Study of Sexual Outsiders .

One more way of looking at erotica and pornography (most of the time the terms are interchangeable) is the sexual act becoming aware of itself: nature turning into culture, sex becoming self-referential.

Since pornography and erotica are genres that provoke physical reactions, what I call "body genres" , they are generally held to be "low" cultural manifestations. However, I like to believe that this list of writers, visual artists, filmmakers, photographers and publishers prove that works of high quality can be found in these badly regarded and maligned "low" genres.

Erotica also carries the connotation of softcore , whereas pornography carries the connotation of hardcore. [May 2006]

Erotica, from the Greek eros , " love ", refers to works of art , including literature , photography , and painting , that deal substantively with erotically stimulating or arousing descriptions . It is rather a modern word used to describe the portrayal of human sensuality [ love ] and sexuality with high-art aspirations, differentiating such work from commercial pornography .

It has been said, euphemistically, that "The difference between erotica and pornography is simple. Erotica is what I like; pornography is what you like, you pervert ".

While pornography popularly focuses on unadorned and unemotional lusts ; the explicit depiction of sexual acts, erotica tends to define material and higher emotional content, the development of place, character and story line , or of an overall artistic theme . However, such distinctions are necessarily subjective and may say more about the critic's own tastes on erotic material than the artistic and other attributes of the material itself. In the motion picture sense, soft porn is a similar kind of commercial art form that resides in the area between erotica and hardcore pornography, although erotica, as a type of fine art , may also be highly explicit .

It is a notable trait of the strength of the human reproductive drive relative to the psyche as a whole, that unambiguous reference to sexuality, framed in a manner which the perceiver thereof finds acceptable, tends to intiate an involuntary reaction of sexual arousal , possibly building increased sexual desire , which may lead to creating or taking advantage of opportunity to engage in sexual activity. This can be true of erotica just as well as other, both more and less refined references to sex. Depictions of the human body which merely fail to conceal or disguise the secondary sexual characteristics of its particular gender may be all that is necessary to trigger arousal in a person who is attracted to that gender. For this reason, erotica is too broadly described merely in terms of the effect that it engenders in its audience, as all sexually related matter has the potential to create such an effect. For example, in the absence of the availability of pornography, some men have used clothing catalogs as a form of erotica. -- http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erotica , Aug 2003

Erotic (1621)
1621 (implied in erotical ), from Fr. йrotique, from Gk. erotikos, from eros (gen. erotos ) "sexual love".

Erotica (1854)
Erotica (1854) is from Gk. neut. pl. of erotikos "amatory," from eros ; originally a booksellers' catalogue heading.

Erotomaniac
"one driven mad by passionate love" (sometimes also used in the sense of "nymphomaniac") is from 1858.

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