The Art of Desire: Erotic Treasures from the Kinsey Institute

This catalog was produced to accompany the exhibition The Art of Desire: Erotic Treasures from The Kinsey Institute, which was presented at the School of Fine Arts Gallery at Indiana University in celebration of The Kinsey Institute's 50th anniversary. Dr. Alfred C. Kinsey (1894-1956) was a pioneer in the scientific study of human sexual behavior. Early on, Kinsey was encouraged to collect visual material which might provide insight into attitudes governing sexual practices.The parameters guiding the selection for inclusion in the exhibit were the categories of beauty, humor, and fantasy -- all components of desire as well as products of social, historical, and cultural construction. The pictures and artifacts encompass male, female, and autoeroticism; hetero- and homosexual caresses and couplings; Eastern and Western, ancient and modern.Each illustration is accompanied by information about the origin, history, cultural context, and purpose of the object. The goal in producing the exhibit and catalog was to suggest the variety, endurance and deep-rootedness of eroticism in historical and modern times and all cultures.