Museum Project Formal Analysis

ARTH 1001 deviseum Formal Analysis Paper The Tiber meditate Winged Victory of the Nike of Samothrace Justinian and Attendants from San Vitale Adrienne Keiser TA- Anna, Tuesday percentage April 23rd, 2013 The Tiber Muse, origin exclusivelyy discoered in the vicinity of the Tiber River in capital of Italy in 1885, is a product of the Graeco- Roman era and is dated around the 2nd-1st degree Celsius BCE. This date and other formal qualities of the sculpture such as the pose, drape and medium suggest that it was produced during the Hellenicalal breaker point of Greece and Asia Minor, and then imported to Rome at a later date.The importation, copying, and public display of Greek finesse were common from the st finesse of Roman conquering of Greek territories and throughout the Roman Imperial era. The formal qualities of this piece, to be explored later in this exhibition, are parallel to those of the Nike of Samothrace in that they both(prenominal) exhibit the dramatic, elabora te techniques common of the Hellenistic extent (323-30 BCE) that embrace a range of emotions, providing us with an overpowering, multi-sensory interpret as we adopt these pieces.The qualities and settle of art during the Hellenistic Period were quite disagreeent from those of the voluminous Era, to be further explored by comparing these dickens sculptures with the Justinian and Attendants arial mosaic from San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy. Through a formal analysis of these three plant, the meaning, purpose and set of the culture that produced them will become clear, and we can further understand the historic context of these two very different cartridge holder periods. The Hellenistic Period is the time between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE and the development of the Roman Imperial Empire.Greek cultural power and influence was at its height, and in that location was smashing prosperity and progress with the arts, theatre, literature, music, philosophy, scien ce and architecture. During this period, Greek culture, influence and address was spreading to other parts of the world. This contri buted to a wide variety in art, producing complex, individual and idealized works, allowing us to admire them from all angles. Hellenistic art seeks expressability and a forcefulness of distributor points, focusing on the height of the moment by expressing the violence of movements.In great statuary, Hellenistic art explores themes such as suffering, sleep, age, victories, and real, versed moments frozen in time. The Tiber Muse and the Nike of Samothrace both exhibit these qualities in many an(prenominal) ways. The Tiber Muse is nearly four feet high and constructed out of marble. The pose and gird positioning of the subject suggests it is a sculpture of a muse caught in the moment of playing an instrument. Even though she is missing her head, most of her accouterments and feet/base, her pose is similar to other known muses.The oval tear (near h er right field arm) in her garment suggests a rare, iconographic tradition whereby musicians were represented with less cut back clothing on their playing arms. Thus, this tear does not suggest an sexy encounter, but or else a young female bending over a rock, caught in the moment of playing an instrument. This divisor of sculpture capturing an versed moment in time is definitely a quality of Hellenistic sculpture. This statue projects into our space, and it is clear one needs to observe it from many different angles to amply understand it.This is very similar to the Nike of Samothrace, withal though it is safe to produce the Nike statue projects into our space much intensely than the Tiber Muse. This is because the Nike of Samothrace was cowcatcherly placed on the summit of a ship to commemorate a naval victory, and then dour in to an elaborate fountain structure at the head of the Daru staircase in the Louvre in Paris. The Tiber Muse was meant to be a smaller, more i ntimate piece that demonstrates the moment of a musician playing, whereas the Nike of Samothrace was sculpted to be a larger-than-life symbol of victory and strength.Both the Tiber Muse and The Nike of Samothrace interpret a mastery of form and movement in marble, that forms a deliberate kindred to the space around the statues. In the Nike statue, the wind that has carried her and which she is fighting off, straining to apply steady, is the invisible complement of the figure and the viewer is made to imagine it. The Tiber Muses pose draws us in to her moment, and forces us to imagine all sensory elements of the space around herthe sound of the music, her motions of playing, and the air around her.In this way, both statues create this sense of auditory drama as well as a multi-sensory, overpowering experience that encompasses many Hellenistic artworks. These two works both make us a participant while viewing, however, I would argue that the Tiber Muse reflects the range of real e motions and a more practical(prenominal) view of sight than does the Nike statue, because the Nike was used to commemorate a victory and was meant to be more symbolic, honoring a goddess and a sea victory, whereas the muse is unidentified and captures a more intimate, real moment.The Nike depicts a more supernatural experience that blows us away with its incredible recondite undercuttings, shadows and Phidian style shroud. While the Tiber Muse also uses similar drapery techniques as well as deep undercuttings and shadow, the Nike is seen as an iconic depiction of triumphant spirit and the divine momently coming face to face with man. The Tiber Muses use of these techniques was to create an idealized portrait of a muse caught in the moment of playing, rather than to represent a goddess of victory and connection to the divine.This idea of capturing a raw, true-to-life(prenominal) moment and the movement from portraying the divine to portraying real people became more apparent l ater in the Hellenistic period, explaining why these two works differ in their purpose and meaning. Thus, although using similar mediums and sculpting techniques, the original contexts of these two works differ greatly, in that the Nike was meant to be viewed publicly on a grand scale, and the Muse is smaller and was probably meant to be a private display of ones social status or education.Although the Justinian mosaic in San Vitale is very different from these two statues in medium, time period and display of figures, the idea of connecting man to the divine is alive in this work as well. Here, the royal on the robe of Justinian connects him to the divine, in that purple was considered a Holy color, often shown on representations of deliverer. However, the purpose of this connection of Justinian to Christ was of propagandistic use, not to symbolize a great victory and a triumphant spirit, as in the Nike of Samothrace.During the early tangled Era, Justinian ruled from Constantinop le, but expanded his rule into the west, making Ravenna a new Western outpost. He constructed San Vitale and the mosaics on the sides of the nave archade to display his ultimate rule and to portray himself as world above most citizens and having a close relationship to Christ. Some even go as far as to argue that he believed he was a descendant of Christ. The colors in this mosaic and throughout San Vitale were of handed-down winding style in that they are meant to disorient you and bring you into a different world.The method of using glass tesserae to create mosaics is also a creation of the Byzantine times. The portrayal of the figures in this mosaic is what makes this work differ greatly from the other statues explored earlier. The figures are flat, clearly two-dimensional subjects depicted with teensy-weensy dissimilitude in size, facial expression and human anatomy. Their only difference between the figures comes from the color of the clothing or what they are holding. The re is no clear depiction of human form, using little to no shadowing or drapery.This is due to the purpose and time period in which it was created. During Byzantine times, this portrait of Justinian and his ensemble was to demonstrate power to the illiterate people about the authority of Justinian Rule, thus making the original purpose of this work really propagandistic. By exploring, comparing and contrasting formal qualities of the Tiber Muse, the Winged Victory of Nike of Samothrace, and the Justinian mosaic of San Vitale, we can deduce several conclusions about the purpose and historical contexts of all(prenominal) work of art.Although the two statues examined were from the same stylistic period, each has its own purpose for being. The Nike of Samothrace is a brilliant Hellenistic display of the multi-sensory drama that a great naval victory entails by projecting into our space. Its purpose was to symbolize a great victory over struggle and divine help or grace. The Tiber Muse also exhibits those Hellenistic sculpture techniques that the Nike statue has, such as drapery and shadowing, but is a more realistic display of an intimate moment.Both show intense detail of human anatomy, but the muse doesnt collapse the divine element the Nike has, but rather a sensual element that brings us into her moment of playing music. The purpose of the Justinian mosaic was to demonstrate the nuclear fusion of his political and religious power, thus there is little attention to detail or the human form that is so pertinent in the two Hellenistic sculptures. Works Cited Roberts, Christopher. How to Recognize and Date a Muse divide Garments, Marble Types, and the Tiber Muse in the Minneapolis Institute of the Arts.The Classical Association of the centre of attention West and South. N. p. , 2005. Web. 21 Apr. 2013. . Images of the Works of Art The Winged Victory of the Nike of Samothrace 220-190 BCE, Hellenistic Period The Tiber Muse 2nd-1st Century BCE, Graeco-Roman or m ore specifically, the Hellenistic Period Gallery G230, Acquisition Number 56. 12 Justinian and his Attendants from San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy 546 CE, Byzantine Era