The Bold and the Beautiful

Bewegungsstudie by Rudolf Koppitz

I first saw this image  some months ago, on a photo-collage wall at the Media Museum in Bradford, and it immediately struck me with its elegant use of the human figure, natural flow and sensuality of its aesthetic.
It was only two weeks ago when I was doing some research for this blog, that I learned what the image is called and who produced it. To my pleasant surprise it was waiting for me between the pages of a book I borrowed from the library. This is what the author of the book, Terry Hope writes about this iconic photograph:

In Austria in the years between the world wars, Rudolf Koppitz was one of the primary movers in the photographic art scene, and "Movement Study" produced in 1926, is his finest work. The composition is immaculate, and has led to the picture being declared one of the greatest images of the 20th century. The gentle tilt of the heads of the models in the  background contrast strikingly with the graceful sweep of the nude in front. Her body is framed entirely by their costumes, and the flow of the picture , created by the dynamic shapes moving at odds within it, ensures that the image is brimming with astonishing vitality and life. When one looks at the degree of control the models have of their bodies here, and the grace with which they're posing, it's perhaps little surprise to learn that all  four were Russian dancers.

The picture resulted from Koppitz's determination to push back the boundaries of what was acceptable in terms of  perspective and the use of symbolism, and his contemporaries often saw the naked figure in the picture as representing death, although Koppitz himself never added any subtitle. Whatever the interpretation, the picture certainly succeeded in changing the perception photographers had until that time of the ability to show movement in a still picture and, as such, it freed up ideas about composition and posing and still has much to teach the photographer today.

(Portraits: Developing Style in Creative Photography,Black and White Photography,Rotovision SA, 2000, p25)

For some more information on the work and life of Rudolf Koppitz follow this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf_Koppitz