grotesque

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KatyBr
Wordmaster
Posts: 959
Joined: Thu Feb 10, 2005 5:28 pm

grotesque

Postby KatyBr » Sat Sep 10, 2005 7:14 pm

grotesque
A noun
1 grotesque

art characterized by an incongruous mixture of parts of humans and animals interwoven with plants
Category Tree:
entity
╚object; physical_object
╚artifact; artefact
╚creation
╚art; fine_art
╚grotesque
B adjective
1 grotesque, monstrous, unnatural

distorted and unnatural in shape or size; abnormal and hideous; "tales of grotesque serpents eight fathoms long that churned the seas"; "twisted into monstrous shapes"

2 antic, fantastic, fantastical, grotesque

ludicrously odd; "Hamlet's assumed antic disposition"; "fantastic Halloween costumes"; "a grotesque reflection in the mirror
from wordreferance.com
I heard today on the History channel that grotesque was a word coined in the 1500's to describe the images of Nero's frescoes (part man part animal/monster images) when they were discovered; Nero; paranoid and crazed had created a monument to his insanity that was covered over and rediscovered, so it was said.
I'm trying to find confirmation of that claim.

this from allwords
grotesque
adj grotesquer, grotesquest

1. Very unnatural or strange-looking, so as to cause fear or laughter.

Thesaurus: deformed, misshapen, hideous, ugly, monstrous, unnatural, gruesome, freakish, macabre, gothic, strange, bizarre.
2. Exaggerated; ridiculous; absurd.

noun

1. A 16c style in art which features animals, plants and people mixed together in a strange or fantastic manner.

Form: the grotesque
2. A work of art in this style.

Derivative: grotesquely
adverb

Derivative: grotesqueness
noun

Derivative: grotesquery

Grotesque objects collectively.
Grotesqueness.
Etymology: 16c as crotesque: from Italian pittura grottesca cave painting, from grotta cave.
so much for the History channels credibility.

Kt

Brazilian dude
Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 1464
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 3:31 pm
Location: Botucatu - SP Brazil

Postby Brazilian dude » Sun Sep 11, 2005 10:31 am

adj grotesquer, grotesquest
:?:
I'll be darned.

Brazilian dude
Languages rule!

tcward
Wordmaster
Posts: 789
Joined: Thu Feb 10, 2005 5:18 pm
Location: The Old North State

Postby tcward » Tue Sep 13, 2005 11:45 am

I'll be more darned! That goes against all intuition...

-Tim


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