Visually and Historically Interesting Periods

Throughout this quarter we have gone over a lot of very unique and interesting periods full of many eye catching and important works of art. When reviewing my notes and looking through each chapter in our books, I found that the Prehistoric period was the most visually interesting to me and Jewish, Early Christian, and Byzantine period was the most historically interesting to me. 

Looking at the Prehistoric age, my favorite pieces were those that represented humans. In prehistoric art, the human figure was represented in such an abstract way which I found to be very appealing. Figures represented in the book as well as lectures that have the abstract appearance include the Venus of Willendorf, the Woman From Brassempouy, the Human Figure, and the Figures of a Woman and a Man. I find these pieces to be so intriguing because of how they portray different parts of the human body. They leave my mind with questions as to what humans looked like back in the prehistoric period and why certain areas of the body were more emphasized than others. We have already studied the Venus of Willendorf and know that most theories suggest that her larger hips and breasts represent fertility. Yet this is not a fact, just a theory. The human figures found in the Prehistoric period, one could say, are mysterious which creates an everlasting impression on me. I like to look at the pieces and come up with theories of my own as well as read what others have to say. All in all, I just like the fact that human figures in the prehistoric period raise questions and have a little mystery behind them. I also find that they can be a bit disturbing to the eye but in an intriguing way. When looking at the Human Figure on page 21, it scares me a bit yet it also grabs my attention. I love the fact that this figure has no mouth and that its eyes are emphasized. I think that overall, the lack of mouth and the dark eyes make the figure intriguing and again, raise questions as to why there is no mouth and what was meant to be told within the eyes. The lack of a mouth scares me a bit and it is shown again on the Woman From Brassempouy on page 7. A lot of the human figures are missing important parts of a natural human body yet the fact that they are lacking these parts, i feel, makes them more visually interesting. 

When thinking about what was historically interesting to me, I thought that they Jewish, Early Christian, and Byzantine Art was the most historically interesting. I have never known a lot about any kind of religion because in a way, I was never too interested. When looking into Judaism, Christianity, and the Islamic religion through art, it became more interesting to me. A lot of the pieces that we talked or read about, I knew bits and pieces about but not a whole lot. in the last blog, I chose to look at the Hildesheim Cathedral Doors and I knew a bit about the fall of Adam and Eve and Christ being crucified but I learned a lot more from just looking over and reading about the Hildesheim Cathedral. I also found the doors to be very interesting with how they related each story from the old testament to a story within the new testament. The stories that each religious piece tells is mostly interesting to me because i am somewhat familiar with each religion and at times, these religions are brought up in my life and I usually have no input on them nor do I have any idea about what is being said but now because of this section that we went over, I am a little more familiar. It was interesting to learn more about these religions and see what they actually have in common with one another. Each religion had a place of worship, whether is be a temple, a synagogue, or a cathedral, they were all decorated with work representing their beliefs. We can see the crucifixion of Christ depicted in many ways and hist story is placed all around churches and different houses of worship on walls and in paintings. For instance, in Jonah and the Whale, we are seeing a story that represents Christ. Jonah is cast overboard on a boat and is swallowed by a great fish. Three days and three nights later, the fish spits Jonah out. This story is parallel to the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ where he too rises three days and three nights later. Through Jonah and the Whale, we are given two different historical stories, one being obvious and the other being more hidden. The Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus is also a very interesting piece depicting very important scenes within monotheistic religion. In this piece we are seeing how Christianity is rising up and is appealing more to rich Romans. We see the defeat of polytheism taking place in this piece. It is interesting to me how shameful it was for people to convert to a monotheistic religion. I had no idea that such a change created so much drama and chaos among people. Overall, i think the movement from a polytheistic to a monotheistic religion was very historically interesting. I think that he art work involved with this transformation and the art work used to promote Christianity was very historically interesting in the stories that were told and how they informed me even more about what I feel was somewhat familiar but still very unclear to me. Christianity is still big and is still around and because of the art work that we have discussed, I feel like I am a little more in the know with this belief. 

We have learned about many great types of art and overall there is something interesting to me about each of types that we have learned about. The human figure in the Prehistoric period specifically stood out to me and has made an impression on me and historically, the Jewish, Early Christian, and Byzantine Art chapter served as the most interesting and attention grabbing for me. 

The Temptation and Fall of Adam and Eve Versus Crucifixion

On the Hildesheim Cathedral Doors are readings of the Old and the New Testaments. Scenes are shown on the Bernward Doors, the left side, containing the story of Adam and Eve from the Old Testament and the right side containing the story of Christ from the New Testament. Although each side tells a different story, when matched up, side by side, they have a lot in common. The left side also tells the story from top to bottom where as the right side tells the story from bottom to top. Even with this difference, the scenes that are side by side still have many similarities and can relate to one another. 

I have chosen to look at the Temptation and Fall of Adam and Eve versus Crucifixion. The Temptation and Fall of Adam and Eve shows Eve giving into temptation by listening to the serpent and eating the fruit off the tree. Adam also ate the fruit and from this, Original Sin was brought into the world. Crucifixion shows Christ being crucified on the cross, sacrificing his life to bring salvation to mankind. On the right of him is Christ's mother, the Virgin Mary and on the left is John the Beloved. We also see on one side, a roman guard stabbing Christ in the side with a spear and on the other side, one is offering Christ some vinegar to drink. 

When looking at the two scenes and thinking about why they were put together, side by side, it is quite interesting to me. I realized that the Temptation and Fall of Adam and Eve depicts the situation that began sin and eventually led up to Crucifixion where Christ died for the sins of mankind. Both scenes revolve around sin which is why I believe they were put together. One shows the creation of sin and the other shows Christ trying to end sin. WIth just these two scenes, we are given the beginning and the end to a story, which is the story of sin. It could also be said that the Temptation and Fall of Eve and Adam created Crucifixion. The two panels show scenes that give off such opposite feelings. In the Fall of Eve and Adam, one might get a sense of anger because of the mistake that Eve and Adam made by giving in to temptation. With Crucifixion, one might feel grateful or happy to see that Christ was willing to sacrifice his life for mankind. Where as Adam and Eve brought about the evil of sin, Christ was trying to take sin away. There is also the fact that Adam and Eve's story goes from top to bottom, or falls and Christ's story goes from bottom to top, or rises. We already get a negative feeling from the left side as the scenes fall down and we get a more positive feeling from the right side as the scenes rise up. These two compositions are opposite in their meanings and emotions but they are similar in the fact that they both deal with sin. 

When looking at the compositions, i noticed that the main object within the scene is in the center. We have the fruit, that is the start of sin, in the middle of the scene on the tree and then we have Christ, trying to end sin, on the cross in the middle as well. The two main objects that affect sin are the center of attention in each composition. They also have a good balance of other objects around them. Christ has two people on either side of him and the fruit has a tree on either side and Adam stands on the right and Eve stands on the left. With having two objects on either side, both of the more important objects stand out in the middle. Even the body language in each composition, draws the eye straight to the middle. Both Adam and Eve are gesturing towards the fruit on the tree. Both of their arms are extended, reaching for the fruit and leading us to focus on what is in the middle. In Crucifixion, the two Roman guards are gesturing straight up to Christ on the cross while the Virgin Mary and John the Beloved also stand facing Christ on the cross. The Virgin Mary holds out her hands towards Christ and through it all, our eyes are drawn to what is in the middle. It also appears to me that Adam, Eve, and the fruit stand out more than the rest of the scene just as Christ does too. They all look as if they are given deep cuts or more detail so that they appear more vivid and alive than the rest of the figures in the two scenes. 

Overall, when looking at the two scenes, it is clear that they both revolve around sin. One depicts the beginning of sin and the other depicts an attempt to end sin. After looking over each composition, it can be inferred that they were paired together to show two different scenes depicting sin in two opposite ways. 

The Bust of Commodus as Hercules and the Head of Caracalla

When looking at the Bust of Commodus as Hercules and the Head of Caracalla side by side, I see two completely different men yet they both still have such a similar meaning behind the creation of their statues. 

The Bust of Commodus as Hercules appears to have  what looks like a lion wrapped around him, The mouth of the lion covers Commodus' head with its sharp teeth lining Commodus' head. The paws of the lion rest on Commodus' chest, and Commodus holds a bat his right hand as if he had just dominated this lion. He wears the lion skin as if it is his trophy to show his courage and strength. The way he holds his bat over his shoulder makes him look as if he is showing off and showing those, perhaps under his rule, that he is capable of taking charge. Just like the sculpture of Augustus of Primaporta, Commodus is portrayed as a God. Augustus was barefoot giving him the appearance of a God while Commodus is given the appearance of Hercules. With a God-like appearance, they would probably be more appealing to others around them or the people under their control. Below Commodus is a head-less and arm-less figure. They figure has features that could resemble either a man or a woman.Their breasts are shaped more like a woman's breasts yet the leg and the foot looks very masculine. Next to the figure is a sphere, leading up to what looks like a shield with the Sun in the middle of it. On top of theses objects, rest the powerful looking Commodus. His body is very muscular and even his facial air is given an orderly look to it. Overall, with his bat, perfect hair, muscular body, a God like face, and trophies surround him, Commodus appears to be a strong and courageous ruler. 

The Head of Caracalla is very similar to the Portrait Head of an Elder statue. They both show a mans face and in each sculpture, we see men who look aged and worn out. Caracalla has fine lines or perhaps wrinkles on his forehead and cheeks. Because of these lines, his cheeks appear to be saggy. He has his eyebrows creased as if he is angry or unhappy. He looks as if he has been defeated with such a stern look on his face. Also, his jaw looks clenched as if he is angry. The fact that his eyes are looking up makes me think that he is looking up to someone who has defeated him. Normally throughout the pieces that we have viewed so far, those who defeat look down upon their enemy but Caracalla is looking up. He also has creases below his eyes making them look tired and saggy. Unlike, the Bust of Commodus as Hercules, the Head of Caracalla gives off the impression of defeat and a real man, not a man seen as a Godly figure. Caracalla depicts a real man who has done his time as a ruler. 

Although both of these sculptures depict two different men in two opposite forms, they are both similar in a sense that they both portray propaganda. Commodus being viewed as a God, Hercules, a man that he is not, probably made people believe that he was a God-like man with the great courage and power. The fact that he is also seen with trophies around him such as the lion skin that he wears and the headless figure below him. makes him also seem powerful to the viewers of this statue. One can propagate from this bust that Commodus was the perfect ruler. The Head of Caracalla's old and defeated look still makes him look appealing to his viewers giving a sense that he was a hard worker and gave it his all as a ruler. Just like the Portrait Head of an Elder, he looks as if he has the wisdom and experience of a powerful and successful ruler. I feel that both of the statues appeal to the same audience which would be those who they ruled, future generations, and enemies. The fact that they are both almost praising these men as rulers shows that they wanted people then and now to see them the way they are depicted in these sculptures. 

All in all, even though both of these sculptures portray two different men, one full of strength and one very fragile looking, they both show a sense of courage and strength through their propagating features.