canon

English translation: his face is not based on the artist's usual model for male figures

20:34 Dec 15, 2020
French to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - Art, Arts & Crafts, Painting / Figure painting style
French term or phrase: canon
Description of a figure in a painting. Context: "L’ordonnateur du repas, avec son chapeau à plume et son col typique des espagnols de la fin du XVIème est probablement un portrait du commanditaire: son visage n’a pas le canon habituel des personnages masculins de l'artiste" What is the sense of "canon" here, please? The usual expression that the artist used? Thanks in advance for any help.
Nicky Over
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:37
English translation:his face is not based on the artist's usual model for male figures
Explanation:
Essentially, something based around the word 'model' (verb/noun).

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Note added at 14 mins (2020-12-15 20:48:54 GMT)
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his faced is not modelled on ...
Selected response from:

Thomas Miles
France
Local time: 10:37
Grading comment
Thanks very much for your help.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +5canon / repertoire
Helen Shiner
4 +1his face is not based on the artist's usual model for male figures
Thomas Miles
4canon
MassimoA
4pattern
Richard George Elliott


  

Answers


6 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +5
canon (here)
canon / repertoire


Explanation:
Is not within the artist's usual repertoire. I have to say to use 'canon' in this limited way is slightly strange. Here is what it normally means in art history: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/glossary/canon-... An audience familiar with art history would understand it though, if you were to use 'canon' in English, too. But you could do better.

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Note added at 8 mins (2020-12-15 20:42:36 GMT)
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A slightly more expansive explanation: https://www.artmumble.com/what-is-meaning-of-canon-when-appl...

Helen Shiner
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:37
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 348

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  philgoddard: I think this is fine. If you're reading a text on art history, you probably know what canon means.
1 hr
  -> Thanks, not sure the writer does, but hey ho.

agree  Yvonne Gallagher
2 hrs
  -> Thanks, Yvonne

agree  writeaway
3 hrs
  -> Thanks, writeaway

agree  Carol Gullidge: yes indeed, in the sense of a criterion rather than the more usual body of work. It also depends on the register of the text.
14 hrs
  -> Thanks, Carol

agree  Michele Fauble
21 hrs
  -> Thanks, Michele
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13 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
son visage n’a pas le canon habituel des personnages masculins de l'artiste
his face is not based on the artist's usual model for male figures


Explanation:
Essentially, something based around the word 'model' (verb/noun).

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Note added at 14 mins (2020-12-15 20:48:54 GMT)
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his faced is not modelled on ...

Thomas Miles
France
Local time: 10:37
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4
Grading comment
Thanks very much for your help.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Carol Gullidge: yes, the "trusty"online Collins gives "4 = idéal MODEL. être le canon de"... to be a model of.... Or you could consider something like "... not typical of the artist's male subjects"//If you don't like "model", you could use, eg, "prototype"
8 mins
  -> Thank you Carol.

neutral  Helen Shiner: Model in art history generally refers to a person who sits as a model for something. This distorts the meaning here.
13 hrs

neutral  Yvonne Gallagher: "the artist's usual model" = a person modelling for the artist
1 day 16 hrs
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12 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
canon


Explanation:
The most obvious sense is the normal character style of the artist.
Canon is also a multinational company that produces cameras and camcorders, sometimes we say "a face like a Canon shot".

MassimoA
Italy
Local time: 10:37
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in ItalianItalian
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1 day 11 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
pattern


Explanation:
Larousse Dictionnaire de la langue française:
1.6. Bx-arts.
Mesure servant de module aux sculpteurs pour les proportions de leurs statues.

Applied by extension here to painting, I believe.



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Note added at 1 day 14 hrs (2020-12-17 11:05:48 GMT)
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His male figures, that is.

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Note added at 1 day 15 hrs (2020-12-17 12:28:43 GMT)
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** The dictionary definition given above is, of course, for the headword "canon" **

Example sentence(s):
  • "...his face does not follow this artist's usual pattern for male characters."
Richard George Elliott
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:37
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 4
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