Ecstasy: Visions of passion, spirituality, and rapture in art

The climax to the act of love casts an indefinable expression on the face – an expression of urgent intensity. A woman, a man, in that moment experiences an ecstasy that for an instant is visible in the eyes and on the lips. A wave of pleasure runs through the body, marking the transition between desire and orgasm. For this fleeting second, when just how violent the senses can be is laid bare, the person involved is not the same as the person immediately before or the person immediately after. With the help of prints and etchings from former centuries, author Hans-Jürgen Döpp looks for an explanation of this very personal mystery that leads to fulfilment.