The architect Lequeu is one of the three leading exponents of the Revolutionary architecture, a movement representing a part of the neoclassicism in France. A great number of monumental buildings and quarters were designed, but almost none of the designs was realized. The series "Figures Lascives" consists of obscene and bizarre drawings depicting male and female genitals. The eye-catching fact in this drawing is the detailed and entire depiction of the female genitalia. The artist depicts inner and outer vaginal labia, vaginal opening, clitoris and pubic hair. The vulva however ist not depicted in a naturalistic way. Some of Lequeu's architectonic designs are full of sexual energy and make viewers think of vulvas. The following analogy thus is the result of comparing an architectural drawing with the vulva: the vagina represents the entry of the cave, the pubic hair symbolizes the vegetation, the vaginal labia symbolize the cliff. Sexual aesthetics is omnipresent in all his architectural designs. Here he considers the vagina as a symbol for the cave. A remarkable fact is that this picture had been drawn before Courbet painted "The Origin of the World" in 1866. After Lequeu's death, the series has been given to the National Library of France, who exhibited it for the first time in 2007/2008.[1] We can take for granted, that in the 18th century these drawings were not revealed to the public.

Biography: http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Jacques_Lequeu

(Translation: K. .Seifter)