The Fine Art of Italian Hand Gestures_ a Vintage Visual Dictionary by Bruno Munari _ Brain Pickings

12/3/13

The Fi ne ne Ar t of Ital ia ian Hand Gestur es es: A Vi nt ntag e Vi su sual Di Di ct cti on onar y by Br un uno Munar i | Br Br ai ai n Pi ck cking s Search

about support contact bookshelf newsletter literary jukebox sounds art art newsletter Brain Pickings has a free weekly interestingn interestingness ess digest. It comes out on Sunda Sundays ys and offers off ers the week's week's best articles. Here's an example. Like? Sign up.

Name Email subscribe

donating = loving Brain Pickings remains ad-free and takes hundreds of hours a month to research and write, and thousands of dollars to sustain. If you find any joy and value in it, it, please consider becoming becoming a Member Member and supporting with a recurring monthly donation of your choosing, between a cup of tea and a good dinner:

The Fine Art of Italian Hand Gestures: A Vintage Visual Dictionary by Bruno Munari by Mar Maria ia Popova Popo va

A pocket guide to Neapolitan Neapoli tan nonverbal communication. communication. Somewhere between his seminal manifestos on design as art and art and his timelessly delightful children’s books, books, legendary Italian I talian artist and graphic designer Bruno Munari made time for a number of idiosyncratic side projects. Among them is Speak Italian: The Fine Art of (UK the Gesture Gesture ( UK;; public library) library) — a charming, quirky, minimalist guide to I talians talians’’ expressive expr essive nonverbal communica communication tion originally or iginally published published in 1958 as a supplement to the Italian dictionary, inspired by The Ancients’ Mimic Through Th rough the Neapolitan Gestures, the Gestures, the first collection of gestures made by Canon Andrea de Jorio Jor io in 1832. Unlike Unlike the hefty and sparsely illustrated 380-page original tome, however, Munari’s pocket-sized version features fe atures frugally descriptive text and ample, elegant black-and-white photographs of hand-gestures for everything for everything from mundane activities like reading and writing to emotive ex pressions of praise and criticism. In the short preface, Munari notes the globalization of nonverbal vernacular, as Neapolitan gestures begin being recognized worldwide and American imports like “OK” perm per mea eate te It Italia alian n cu culture, lture, then promises: We have collected a good many gestures, leaving aside vulgar ones, in order to give an idea of their meaning to foreigners visiting Italy and as a supplement to an Italian dictionary.

♥ $7 / month

You can also become a onetime patron with a single donation in any amount:

labors of love www.b www.brai rainpickings npickings.org .org /index.php/2 /index.php/2012/1 012/12/13/b 2/13/bruno-munariruno-munari- speak-i speak-i talian-g talian- g estures/?fb_action_ids=102013 estures/?fb_action_ids=1020134278 42787392 7392598&f 598&fb_action_ty b_action_types=og pes=og.li .li kes&fb_source= es&fb_source= o…

1/12

12/3/13

The Fine Art of Italian Hand Gestures: A Vintage Visual D icti onary by Bruno Munari | Brain Pickings

Old Neapolitan gestures, from left to right: money, past times, affirmation, stupid, good, wait a moment, to walk backward, to steal, horns, to ask for.

www.brainpickings.org /index.php/2012/12/13/bruno-munari- speak-i talian-gestures/?fb_action_ids=10201342787392598&fb_action_types=og.li kes&fb_source= o…

2/12

12/3/13

The Fi ne Ar t of Ital ian Hand Gestur es: A Vi ntag e Vi sual Di cti onar yby Br uno Munar i | Br ai n Pi cking s

must-reads Another illustrated page of the book of Canon Andrea de Jorio. Meaning of the gestures: silence, no, beauty, hunger, to mock, weariness, stu pid, squint, to deceive, cunning.


3/12

12/3/13

The Fine Art of Italian Hand Gestures: A Vintage Visual Di ctionary byBruno Munari | Brain Picking s

HOW TO FIND YOUR PURPOSE AND DO WHAT YOU LOVE

Gestures of drinking and eating (from an old Neapolitan print) FAIL SAFE: COURAGE AND THE CREATIVE LIFE

FAMOUS WRITERS ON WRITING

'You make a mockery of the 'madam'!' (from an old Neapolitan print) HOW TO STAY SANE

CULTURAL ICONS ON THE MEANING OF LIFE


4/12

12/3/13


ALBERT EINSTEIN ON THE SECRET TO LEARNING ANYTHING

THE BEST BOOKS OF 2012

THE DAILY ROUTINES OF FAMOUS WRITERS

5 ESSENTIAL BOOKS ON FEAR AND THE CREATIVE PROCESS

10 TIPS ON WRITING

FROM DAVID

OGILVY


5/12

12/3/13


9 BOOKS TO HELP YOU READ MORE AND WRITE BETTER

JOHN CLEESE ON THE 5 FACTORS TO MAKE YOUR LIFE MORE CREATIVE

JOAN DIDION ON KEEPING A NOTEBOOK

100 IDEAS THAT CHANGED GRAPHIC DESIGN

7 MUST-READ BOOKS ON THE ART & SCIENCE OF HAPPINESS


6/12

12/3/13


RICHARD DAWKINS ON EVIDENCE IN SCIENCE, LIFE AND LOVE: A LETTER TO HIS 10-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER

CREATIVE CARTOGRAPHY: 7 MUST-READ BOOKS ON MAPS

CARL SAGAN ON SCIENCE AND SPIRITUALITY

JOHN STEINBECK ON FALLING IN LOVE: A 1958 LETTER

7 OBSCURE CHILDREN’S BOOKS BY FAMOUS AUTHORS OF ADULT LITERATURE


7/12

12/3/13


WHY WE LOVE: 5 BOOKS ON THE PSYCHOLOGY OF LOVE

7 MUST-READ BOOKS ON MUSIC, EMOTION & THE BRAIN

BERTRAND RUSSELL'S 10 COMMANDMENTS OF TEACHING

5½ TIMELESS COMMENCEMENT SPEECHES TO TEACH YOU TO DEFINE YOUR OWN SUCCESS

explore activism advertising

animation art books children's books collaboration creativity www.brainpickings.org /index.php/2012/12/13/bruno-munari- speak-i talian-gestures/?fb_action_ids=10201342787392598&fb_action_types=og.li kes&fb_source= o…

8/12

12/3/13


culture visualization diaries

data

design

documentary

education

film

happiness

history

food

illustration innovation interview knowledge letters literature love music neuroscience omnibus

philosophy photography poetry politics

psychology remix science social web sustainability technology TED SoundCloud

video vintage vintage children's books world writing


9/12

12/3/13


For a naughty twist, complement Speak Italian: The Fine Art of the Gesture with the surrealist chart of erotic hand signaling.

Donating = Loving Bringing you (ad-free) Brain Pickings takes hundreds of hours each month. If you find any joy and stimulation here, please consider becoming a Supporting Member with a recurring monthly donation of your choosing, between a cup of tea and a good dinner:

♥ $7 / month

www.brainpickings.org /index.php/2012/12/13/bruno-munari- speak-i talian-gestures/?fb_action_ids=10201342787392598&fb_action_types=og.li kes&fb_source= …

10/12

12/3/13


You can also become a one-time patron with a single donation in any amount:

Brain Pickings has a free weekly newsletter. It comes out on Sundays and offers the week’s best articles. Here’s what to expect. Like? Sign up.

Like

14k

1,526

120

0 Tweet

TAGS:

ART

BOOKS

BRUNO MUNARI

CULTURE

DESIGN

LANGUAGE

VINTAGE

You might also enjoy:

Iconic Illustrator Eric Carle's Vibrant Ode to Friendship

Fritz Kahn: The Little- How Hans Chr istian Wild Raspberries: Known Godfather of Andersen Young And y Warhol's Infographics Revolutionized Little-Known Vintage Storytelling, Plus the Cookbook Best Illustrations from 150 ...

Brain Pickings participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn comm issions by linki ng to Amazon. In more human terms, this means that whenever you buy a book on Amazo n from a link o n here, I get a small percentage of its price. That helpssupport Brain Pickings by offsetting a fraction of what it takes to maintain the site, and is very much appreci ated.

Brain Pickings

Subscribe

Design by: Josh Boston

RSS email


11/12

12/3/13



12/12

The Fine Art of Italian Hand Gestures_ a Vintage Visual Dictionary by Bruno Munari _ Brain Pickings

Recommend Documents