Power of the Eyebrow

Charles Le Brun was a painter for Louis XIV in the 17th century. He was in charge of the French Royal Academy of art and he dictated the style and taste of art in ways that impacted the next century or so of art. Anywho, he considered showing expressions very important and he created a handbook for artists with different facial expressions that was widely published.

This is an excerpt from an article we read for my art history classes by Linda Walsh called "Charles Le Brun 'art dictator of France'".

"Le Brun asserted (with a touching confidence) that the eyebrow is the most expressive part of the face because it best shows the 'nature of the agitation' of the soul. Plate 72 shows how the eyebrows are linked to the pineal gland situated 'in the middle of the brain' - the brain being the part of the body 'where the soul exercises its functions most immediately'. Although Le Brun conceded that eyes, mouths and noses can betray or express emotion...he felt that the eyebrow was capable of the greatest and most subtle range of positions, and thus able to express passions of all kinds."

Lol! So utterly fabulous. Gotta heart it. See the diagram for anger below, with the man himself below that. (It appears that his eyebrows, at least would be capable of considerable gyrations.) The picture at the beginning of the post is really small, but check out those sweet brows.