Adam and Eve

Throughout his life Dürer was in thrall to the idea that the perfect human form corresponded to a system of proportion and measurements, and could be generated by using such a system. Near the end of his life he wrote several books codifying his theories. Dürer's fascination with ideal form is manifest in Adam and Eve. The first man and woman are shown in nearly symmetrical, idealized poses; each with their weight on one leg, the other bent, and each with one arm angled slightly upward from the elbow and somewhat away from the body. The figure of Adam is reminiscent of the Hellenistic Apollo Belvedere, excavated in Italy late in the fifteenth century.