Posts filed under 'Sculpture'
The Statue of David is perhaps one of the most famous sculptures in the world. It is a Renaissance masterpiece sculpted by Micheangelo from 1501 to 1504. It is considered as one of the greatest works of the famous Renaissance artist along with his other sculpture, the Pieta.
The Statue of David can be found in the city of Florence in Italy. The original statue is now located at the Accademia Gallery where it is being protected from damage. A replica of the statue now stands in its former place at the entrance of the Palazzo Vecchio in 1910. The replica statue still attracts many visitors at Florence. There is also another replica of the famous statue that is located at the Piazza della Signora which also attracts throngs of spectators passing by.
The original statue of David was commissioned by the guild of wool merchants in the city, or Arte della Lana. This guild was responsible for the maintenance and the decoration of the Cathedral of Florence. The guild was tasked to oversee the creation of 12 large sculptures for cathedral. Michelangelo was given the task of finishing the statue of David after previous artists commissioned to form one from a single block of marble. The statue was first started on at around 1464 and Michelangelo was awarded the commission sometime in the 1500’s. By this time, the previous artists were able to form the legs, feet and the figure from the huge block of statue. Michelangelo started working on it in 1501 and was able to finish it in a span of three years.
Michelangelo’s David was created following the style of the artistic discipline called disegno which tries to mimic divine creation. Its positioning is based on the contrapposto style of human pose depicted as a human form standing with most of its weight on one foot giving the figure a more dynamic appearance. With this style, Michelangelo was able to create a statue that became widely known fas a symbol of strength and youthful human beauty.
March 26th, 2008
The Thinker, or Le Penseur in French, is a well-known bronze and marble sculpture that was created by noted artist, Auguste Rodin. It stands in the Rodin Museum in Paris and depicts a man in deep meditation and somehow struggling from an internal conflict. It has the man posed in a crouching position with the right hand to the chin and with the right elbow placed on the left knee. It depicts a person in deep contemplation as if surveying something below it. The Thinker has been used at times to represent Philosophy.
This marvelous piece of sculpture was originally named as The Poet and was only to become a part of a commission by the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris for the creation of a monumental door depicting different scenes that is based on Dante’s literary masterpiece, The Divine Comedy. The Thinker was initially intended to depict Dante himself placed on top of the monumental door looking at the scene below. Rodin has planned the monumental portal to have statues that represented one of the main characters in Dante’s book.
Instead of the actual sculpture finding itself on the monumental door, Rodin has created a miniature of the statue that sits atop of the gates portrayed in the portal. The Thinker was sculpted in the tradition of style used at the time of Michelangelo, hence its nude appearance. Rodin made the first small plaster version of the statue around 1880.
The first large scale bronze cast of The Thinker was already finished sometime in 1902 but was not officially presented to the public until two years later. It first became the property of the city of Paris and was first displayed in front of the Pantheon sometime in 1906, thanks to the work of the artist’s many admirers who made it possible. It was later on removed and placed in Hotel Biron sometime in 1922, which was later on transformed and became the Rodin Museum.
Through the years, The Thinker has traveled through a number of countries. The original cast made its way to Wadsworth Athanaeum in Hartford Connecticut and was displayed there from March to April of 2006. It was then put on display at the Sakip Sabanci Museum in Istanbul, Turkey until September of 2006. It has since made its way back to Paris. Currently, there have been over twenty casts of The Thinker that can be found in various museums all over the world. Some of these are copies of the original work in different scales.
December 19th, 2007
The Lady Justice is probably one of the most recognizable pieces of sculpture in the world. It is also one of those popular sculptures that cannot be attributed to just a single famous sculptor since a great number of artists from past to present have created their own version of this revered subject. The Lady Justice has adorned many law establishments all over the world with its beauty and its presence that symbolizes one of the inherent virtues of humanity, that is, justice.
The Lady Justice has a history that spans back since ancient times. She is said to be the personification of Justicia, the Roman goddess of Justice. She may also be attributed to the Hellenic goddess Themis, who embodied law and custom as well of divine order. Some say that Lady Justice is a combination of the different ancient characters that is said to uphold law and order, all of which may have contributed to the modern portrayal of the revered Lady Justice that we know today. The blindfold over the eyes of today’s Lady Justice may have come from the early depictions of Themis. The sword may have originated from early Egyptian depictions of Ma’at, often depicted as a lady that holds a sword and an ostrich feather on her hair who also symbolized truth and justice. It was Justicia who was later on depicted with the blindfold over her eyes that held the scales and a sword that became the basis for the modern Lady Justice.
Lady Justice is usually portrayed as an elegant lady with a blindfold that is carrying a sword in one hand and the scales in the other. These symbols stand for the principles that are required to uphold the rule of law and justice. The blindfold over the eyes symbolizes a justice that is given without prejudice. The blindfold signifies that justice should be upheld regardless of rank or position, power, identity or weakness. It came to further symbolize justice served objectively.
The sword of Lady Justice is said to symbolize the power that justice holds in preserving law and order. The sword may also stand for Reason and Justice which can be meted either for or against any party. The scales came to symbolize how justice comes to measure support or opposition for a situation in order to come out with an objective decision.
Different artists have depicted Lady Justice in quite a number of incarnations. They mostly include the three modern symbolisms that came to be associated with this recognizable icon. It has become quite a common depiction of Justice that this revered lady can be found in almost every courthouse and law establishment all over the world.
November 28th, 2007
A pieta is an Italian word for artworks that depict the Virgin Mary cradling the body of the dead Jesus. There are many notable pietas that have been made by various artists throughout history. Probably the most well known of all is La Pieta by Michelangelo.
Michelangelo’s La Pieta can be found in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. It is the only work of the famed artist that contained his signature (found on a diagonal ribbon that is carved across the Virgin Mary’s breast). His signature on the La Pieta may be an indication of his satisfaction with his work.
Prior to creating the Pieta, Michelangelo was a relative unknown in the art world. He was then in his early twenties when he was commissioned in 1498 by the French cardinal Jean de Billheres to make one as the cardinal’s funeral monument. It eventually became one of the four pietas that Michelangelo made and the only one that he was able to finish completely.
Michelangelo was able to carve out the famous La Pieta from a single slab of marble. It took him less than two years to complete what is probably one of the most magnificent sculptures ever made. This masterpiece sculpture was unique in several way to some of the pietas that were done before it. The La Pieta is an artwork that was the first to strike a balance between the Renaissance ideals of classical beauty with that of naturalism. It was also one of the first pietas made in Italy that depict the body of Jesus lying on the lap of the Virgin Mary after the Crucifixion. The La Pieta by Michelangelo was also one of the first pietas to depict a youthful and serene Virgin Mary instead of o broken hearted and more mature woman.
The structure of Michelangelo’s La Pieta is said to be pyramidal with its vertex marked to coincide with the Virgin Mary’s head. The sculpture then widens gradually towards the bottom. The figures of the statue seem to be out of proportion since it may have been difficult for the artist to exhibit a full-grown Jesus cradled in the Virgin Mary’s lap. But aside from this, the relationship between the two figures appears to be quite natural.
After the La Pieta was finished, its first home was the Chapel of Santa Petronilla which is a Roman mausoleum located at the south precept of St. Peter’s. It was later transferred to another chapel in the Basilica because rebuilding plans by Bramante required its previous location to be demolished.
The famed statue also sustained some damage during the subsequent years. The four fingers on the Virgin Mary’s left hand required restoration in 1736 after they were broken while being moved. On May 21, 1972, the statue was vandalized by a mentally deranged geologist named Lazlo Toth who used a hammer to sustain certain damage on the features of the Virgin Mary. After the sculpture was painstakingly restored it was returned to its location and protected with a bullet-proof acrylic glass panel to prevent further damage from vandals.
October 31st, 2007
The Venus de Milo is an ancient Greek statue that is one of the most recognizable sculptures in the world. Also known as the Aphrodite of Milos, this marble sculpture is said to depict the Greek goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite. It stands at about 80 inches high, making it slightly larger than life size. Aside from its form, the statue is made recognizable by its missing arms. This sculpture was said to be the work of Alexandros of Antioch as was found out from an inscription written on the statue’s original plinth.
The Venus de Milo was discovered in 1820 buried within the ancient city ruins of Milos in the Aegean Island of Melos or Milo. It was found by a peasant and was found in two main pieces, the one being the upper torso while the other composed of the lower draped legs. Fragments of the upper left arm as well as the left hand holding an apple was found with the statue along with an inscribed plinth. The peasant later on sold it to French soldiers who were exploring on the island. As it was being transported, the French sailors had to fight off some Greek brigands who also wanted possession of the statue. In the process, the statue was dragged into some rocks as it was being led to the ship, breaking off both of the arms.
After the statue arrived in France, it was sent to the Louvre where the statue was reassembled. There the statue was discovered to have been made out of six to seven blocks of marble that was pieced together, as was the practice of sculptors during that era. The left arm and hand holding an apple was not reassembled to the whole statue as the restorers found this part of the statue to be not as well finished as the rest of the statue, making them believe that it may not have been a part of the original.
A plinth that came with the statue was found to fit perfectly with it. The inscription on the plinth has stated that Alexandros of Antioch made the statue and not the artist Praxiteles as was being publicized by some of the experts then. The plinth mysteriously disappeared before the statue was to be presented to King Louis XVII in 1821. What remains of the proof today are two drawings and an early description of the lost plinth.
The style of the statue was indicative of the late Hellenistic Period in Greek art, which was a mixture of the revival of classical themes with innovation. The slipping drapery that is evident in the statue shows a closed stance and introduces a different look to the figure. It also aims to hide the joint made by the two blocks of marble that were sculpted separately. The same was also done to the left arm and leg.
October 3rd, 2007