METROGADFLY symbolic art: Backbone...

Never grow a wishbone, daughter, where you backbone ought to be. Clementine Paddleford

Comparative mythologist David Talbott relates the Chinese image to a complex of motifs in ancient Egypt. He says: "So what is the relationship to the principle of 'longevity'? The Egyptian Djed, 'ladder' of heaven, and 'backbone' present the nuances of endurance, stable support, and a continuation of life. They refer to the stable character of the stacked tori--part of the 'backbone' and 'ladder' motif. In this they stand as a contrast to the violent and wildly unstable phases that preceded it, including celestial wandering.

Looking for backbone on the web:

Lisa Venditelli -Backbone/Coloma Vertebrale - San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art - San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art - Artsopolis.com: "'Backbone/Vertebrale symbolizes these immigrant workers. The installation is dedicated to the thousands of women and children who endured these conditions with little reward and no recognition.' Backbone/Coloma Vertebrale is part of the ICA's new media installation series, 'Night Moves,' providing after-dark programming in the gallery's front and rear windows."

Devil's Backbone - Art Comet Studios

whale bones, backbone Images, Photography, Stock Pictures, Archives, Fine Art Prints

Backbone Campaign

kanji Symbol-backbone
"backbone mean: backbone center centra central hub centrum core eye focal point focus forefront heart navel nub omphalos pivot"

Personal commentary:
I use the undulating line of the backbone as the beginning point of many of my drawings. That first spontaneous "line of beauty" and strength anchors my drawing and provides an attachement point for my organic and geometric elements.

“The Line of Beauty is a term and a theory in Art or Aesthetics used to describe an S-shaped curved line (a serpentine line) appearing within an object, as the boundary line of an object, or as a virtual boundary line formed by the composition of several objects. This theory originated with William Hogarth (18th century English painter, satirist, and writer), and is an essential part of Hogarth's theory of Aesthetics as described in his Analysis of Beauty (1753). According to this theory, S-Shaped curved lines signify liveliness and activity and excite the attention of the viewer as contrasted with straight lines, parallel lines, or right-angled intersecting lines which signify stasis, death, or inanimate objects.”