Friday, January 3, 2014
Friday, December 20, 2013
Bulgarian Sculpture No 3
The Monument to the
Benefactors, by Georgi Chapkanov
The Monument to the Benefactors (2005) commemorates people from the area
who donated money to the town's development.
Bulgarian Sculpture No 2
Slaveikovi - the father and the son, by Georgi Chapkanov
Bulgarian Sculpture No 1
The mother, by Ivan Lazarov
The sculpture of a mother is constantly waiting in the
yard of a house. This is the sculpture of The Mother (1934) and the birthplace of a famous Bulgarian poet Dimcho
Debelyanov (1887-1916), whose death in
the First World War cut off his
promising literary career.
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Italian Sculpture n°2
Psyche revived by Cupid's kiss
by Antonio Canova
by Antonio Canova
This winged young man who has just landed on a rock where a girl lies unconscious, is the god Eros – Cupid in Latin – and can be recognized by his wings and his quiver filled with arrows. The girl’s name is Psyche. Cupid’s mother Venus, goddess of Beauty, demanded that Psyche bring back a flask from the Underworld, strictly forbidding her to open it.
But Psyche’s curiosity got the better of her; and no sooner had she had breathed in the terrible fumes than she fell into a deep, deathlike sleep. Seeing her lying motionless, Cupid rushed to her and touched her gently with the tip of his arrow, to make sure she was not dead. This is the moment caught by the sculptor: Cupid lifts his beloved Psyche in a tender embrace, his face close to hers. Psyche lets herself sink slowly backwards, languorously taking her lover’s head between her hands.
Canova took his inspiration from a legend recounted by Latin author Apuleius in the Metamorphoses At the close of the tale the gods decide in council to grant Cupid Psyche’s hand in marriage, according her immortality and making her the goddess of the Soul.
Antonio CANOVA (1757 – 1822)
Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss
Marble - H. 1.55 m; L. 1.68 m; D. 1.01 m
MR 1777
Paris, Musée du Louvre
FOR MORE INFORMATION
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psyche_Revived_by_Cupid's_Kiss
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psyche_Revived_by_Cupid's_Kiss
http://www.arscentre.com/2012/11/antonio-canova-cupid-and-psyche.html
http://musee.louvre.fr/oal/psyche/psyche_acc_en.html
Italian Sculpture n°1
The Three Graces
Antonio Canova’s statue ‘The Three Graces’ is a Neoclassical sculpture, in marble, of the mythological three charites, daughters of Zeus. The Three Graces illustrates Canova's outstanding ability to transform cold hard marble into soft lustrous skin. According to Greek mythology the three daughters of Zeus and Euryoneme were called Euphrosyne, Aglaia and Thalia. They were traditionally associated with Aphrodite, the goddess of love and were said to represent beauty, charm and joy. Canova arranged the beautiful sisters in a loose semi-circle so that they complement one another in their poses and gazes, entwined arms and narrow swathes of drapery. The sculpture was commissioned by the 6th Duke of Bedford and installed on a pedestal (which could be rotated) in a specially built Temple at his country house, Woburn Abbey. The Graces presided over banquets and gatherings primarily to entertain and delight the guests of the Gods.
The piece itself is carved exactingly from a single slab of white marble. Canova's assistants roughly blocked out the marble, leaving Canova to finish the final carving and shape the stone to highlight the Graces’ soft flesh. This was a trademark of the artist, and the piece shows a strong allegiance to the Neo-Classical movement of which Canova is the prime exponent in the field of sculpture. The lines are exquisite, refined and elegant.
The three goddesses are shown nude, huddled close together in embrace, their heads almost touching in what many have referred to as an ‘erotically charged’ piece. They stand, leaning slightly inward – perhaps discussing a common issue, or simply enjoying being close to one another. Their hair-styles are all similar, with the hair braided and held on top of their heads in a knot.
The style is elegant and suggests refinement and class – there is a delicate beauty to them that is commonplace in Canova’s sculpture. Art historians have often commented on the peaceful balance that seems to exist between the Three Graces’ heads. Unlike compositions of the Graces, which were derived from antiquity (where the outer figures turn out towards the viewer and the central figure embraces her friends with her back to the viewer) - Canova's figures stand side by side, facing each other.
The three slender female figures become one in their embrace, united by not only their linked hands, but also by the scarf which links all of them together. The unity of the Graces is one of the piece's main themes.
THE ARTIST
Antonio Canova (Italian, 1757 - 1822)
Canova, who was based in Rome, was one of the most famous artists in eighteenth-century Europe . His sculpture was celebrated for its classical character and convincing lifelike qualities. Canova successfully emulated and, in the view of some contemporaries, even surpassed sculptors of Antiquity and more recent times, such as Michelangelo and Bernini. He was also inspired by painters, especially those from Venice, near his birthplace, Possagno. In 1801 he was knighted by the Pope and in 1814 honoured with the title of Perpetual President of the Academy of St Luke. His work attracted distinguished patrons from all over Europe, including Britain.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O70425/the-three-graces-group-canova-antonio/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/dna/place-lancashire/plain/A853021
Italian Sculpture n°3
Moses shows a seated figure, not in any dynamic action, yet somehow managing to exude restless energy and anger. This is at the point in the story where Moses returns from the Mount Sinai with the two tablets of testimony with the intent to deliver the Ten Commandments to his people but instead breaks them in his terrible anger when he sees them worshipping the Golden Calf. His left leg is pulled back, so the hips are turned towards the left, with the torso turned a little towards the right, the face is again turned towards the left and he pulls his beard to the right side. This creates an interesting and dynamic composition. The figure looks disproportionate, with a long torso, because the statue was meant to be on the upper storey and he had proportioned it to look right when viewed from below.
1513-1515
Marble, height 235 cm
San Pietro in Vincoli, Rome
Marble, height 235 cm
San Pietro in Vincoli, Rome
THE ARTIST
Michelangelo Buonarroti was arguably the most famous artist of the High to Late Italian Renaissance, and inarguably one of the greatest artists of all time -- along with fellow Renaissance men Leonardo DiVinci and Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio).
He considered himself a sculptor, primarily, but is equally well known
for the paintings he was induced (grudgingly) to create. He was also an
architect and an amateur poet.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
http://youtu.be/mglpxDh9dws
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
French Sculpture n°3
Bronze Waltz by Camille Claudel (1893)
Camille Claudel (8 December 1864 – 19 October 1943) was a French sculptor and graphic artist. She was the elder sister of the poet and diplomat Paul Claudel..jpg)
Fascinated with stone and soil as a child, as a young woman she studied at the Académie Colarossi with sculptor Alfred Boucher. (At the time, the École des Beaux-Arts barred women from enrolling to study.) In 1882, Claudel rented a workshop with other young women, mostly English, including Jessie Lipscomb.
Alfred Boucher became her mentor and provided inspiration and
encouragement to the next generation of sculptors such as Laure Coutan
and Claudel. The latter was depicted in "Camille Claudel lisant" by
Boucher and later she herself sculpted a bust of her mentor. Before moving to
Florence and after having taught Claudel and others for over three
years, Boucher asked Auguste Rodin
to take over the instruction of his pupils. This is how Rodin and
Claudel met and their tumultuous and passionate relationship started.
Around 1884, she started working in Rodin's workshop. Claudel became a
source of inspiration, his model, his confidante and lover. She never
lived with Rodin, who was reluctant to end his 20-year relationship with
Rose Beuret.
Knowledge of the affair agitated her family, especially her mother, who
never completely agreed with Claudel's involvement in the arts.As a consequence, she left the family house. In 1892, after an unwanted
abortion, Claudel ended the intimate aspect of her relationship with
Rodin, although they saw each other regularly until 1898.
It would be a mistake to assume that Claudel's reputation has
survived simply because of her once notorious association with Rodin.
The novelist and art critic Octave Mirbeau
described her as "A revolt against nature: a woman genius". Her early
work is similar to Rodin's in spirit, but shows an imagination and
lyricism quite her own, particularly in the famous Bronze Waltz (1893). The Mature Age (1900) whilst interpreted by her brother as a powerful allegory of her break with Rodin, with one figure The Implorer
that was produced as an edition of its own, has also been interpreted
in a less purely autobiographical mode as an even more powerful
representation of change and purpose in the human condition.
French Sculpture 2
The Quarantine by Marc Petit (Clay)
Marc Petit made his first sculptures at the age of 14 in Cahors, where he spent his childhood.
Then he met two sculptors, students of the Fine Arts in Paris, who regularly corrected his work. René Fournier taught him the basics of modelling and transmitted him the teaching of Marcel Gimond. Jean Lorquin, Grand Prix de Rome in 1949, brought him his vision, his knowledge, but also a true reflection about sculpture.
He now lives in Haute-Vienne, near Limoges.
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French Sculpture n°1
The Cry by Auguste Rodin 1886
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François-Auguste-René Rodin (12 November 1840 – 17 November 1917), known as Auguste Rodin, was a French sculptor.
Although Rodin is generally considered the progenitor of modern sculpture,
he did not set out to rebel against the past. He was schooled
traditionally, took a craftsman-like approach to his work, and desired
academic recognition, although he was never accepted into Paris's foremost school of art.
Sculpturally, Rodin possessed a unique ability to model a complex, turbulent, deeply pocketed surface in clay.
Many of his most notable sculptures were roundly criticized during his
lifetime. They clashed with the predominant figure sculpture tradition,
in which works were decorative, formulaic, or highly thematic. Rodin's
most original work departed from traditional themes of mythology and allegory,
modeled the human body with realism, and celebrated individual
character and physicality. Rodin was sensitive to the controversy
surrounding his work, but refused to change his style. Successive works
brought increasing favor from the government and the artistic community.
From the unexpected realism of his first major figure – inspired by
his 1875 trip to Italy – to the unconventional memorials whose
commissions he later sought, Rodin's reputation grew, such that he
became the preeminent French sculptor of his time. By 1900, he was a
world-renowned artist. Wealthy private clients sought Rodin's work after
his World's Fair
exhibit, and he kept company with a variety of high-profile
intellectuals and artists. He married his lifelong companion, Rose
Beuret, in the last year of both their lives. His sculptures suffered a
decline in popularity after his death in 1917, but within a few decades,
his legacy solidified. Rodin remains one of the few sculptors widely
known outside the visual arts community.
Friday, September 27, 2013
French Photo n°3
Deliberately cinematic, Gosselin's photography reveals friends in the act of escaping from their regular lives into newly enticing and perilous modes of existence, ever in search of the persistent though elusive idea of freedom."
Born near Le Havre in Normandy in 1990, Theo Gosselin grew up with the sea, the wind, the forest, and the sound of electric guitars, echoing in the deserted streets of this grey city from the north of France. Fond of drawing, music, and cinema, he graduated in 2012 as a graphic designer in Amiens.
He started photography in 2007, and it became his reason to live. He loves capturing simple life, love, good and bad moments, his friends and his adventures. He is an eternal traveller trying to find peace on the roads of Europe and the USA. He shares his way of life with people he loves.
In August 2012, he made his first full-length film, "Goodbye Horses", a road movie in which he is an actor with four friends. They bought a van in NY city and they drove 20 000 km across the USA to LA.
Young, free and immortal.
Théo Gosselin on Facebook
French Photo n°2
Henri Cartier-Bresson (August 22, 1908 – August 3, 2004) was a French photographer considered to be the father of modern photojournalism. He was an early adopter of 35 mm format, and the master of candid photography. He helped develop the street photography or life reportage style that was coined The Decisive Moment that has influenced generations of photographers who followed.
Henry Cartier-Bresson's Foundation
French Photo n°1
E JR, born February 22, 19831, is a French contemporary artist. He exhibits his photographs in the street, calling it "the biggest art gallery in the world." His work combines art and action and deals with commitment, freedom, identity and limits.
After finding a camera in the Paris metro in 2001, he started exploring the world of European urban art and followed those who express their message on walls. Then he began to work on the vertical limits, watching people and slices of life in forbidden basements and rooftops of the capital.
JR does not consider himself as a street artist nor a photographer. For his projects, he uses photos but also videos or canvas.
"I want to bring art in unlikely places and create large projects that involves various communities and forces us to question the world."
Thursday, September 26, 2013
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