ABSTRACT
In the fi rst place, caricature has lost a lot of its meaning by having been identifi ed almost exclusively with the drawing of funny likenesses. I recently went to my local library in Solvang to check out a book on the subject. In it there were no drawings below the neck. Yet actually, caricaturing the face is but one small facet of the art. The word caricature was derived from the Italian or French word, caricatura , meaning satirical picture, literally an overloading; or caricare, to load, exaggerate, i.e., greatly distort. The exaggeration can be humorous or corny or weird. At any rate it does not just apply to the face. Therefore, we who are interested in gesture, apply the meaning to the whole body or the relationship between two or more bodies. Regardless of the origin of the word, the important thing is the idea of exaggeration. Not just for the sake of exaggeration, but to extract every bit of personality or action from a gesture that will best portray your character’s special traits, whether it’s Beauty of Beauty and the Beast , or Roger Rabbit.
