In many ways, this motif reminds me of the rosette carvings from the middle ages in churches from Europe. I doubt that was the intention, but, nonetheless, it is the outcome.
Tag: 19th century
Wednesday
One of my very first posts was of another one of the elevator grilles from the Chicago Stock Exchange (also in the SLAM collection), but they are differently sized and also, this one has this bit of decorative paneling at the bottom, too. I mean, dude. This isn’t your mom’s elevator grille. This is a hardcore, hard working elevator grille; it wasn’t just decorative, it was functional as all get out. And speaking as someone who was in a rickety scary old elevator of death in a perpetual construction site apartment building in New York City last weekend… that’s gotta mean something, right? Function over form, yo.
Tuesday
Look at this – again, it’s that Art Nouveau style, but kind of prior to the real beginnings of that movement, so it’s sending out feelers and going, “how far can we push the envelope without going too far?” It’s really kind of ingenious, really.
Monday
Holy hell on wheels with a side of cheese sauce, y’all, architectural motifs are my bread, butter, and jam. This lunette is a particularly gorgeous example of the form; there’s an element of high drama and almost painful snobbery that gives it an elevated status amongst its peers. Even in un-treated terra cotta, it’s absolutely beautiful. Love it.
Saturday
This particular piece of wood sculpture has been one of my favorites in the SLAM collection for a very long time. It has a particular feeling to it that you can’t appreciate until you’re standing in front of it, taking in all of the mana and life essence of the piece. Until then, it’s just a pretty piece of wood.
Saturday
This particular piece of pottery looks like it’s being wrapped up in vines – and that impression is exactly what was meant to be communicated. The shape is very unsubtle in its execution of the ‘feminine ideal form’, coupled with the natural vibe and the Art Nouveau styling makes it very specific to the time period. It’s that not quite Victorian, not quite Edwardian.
Tuesday
I just want to put my hand in the spray of the water. Is that weird? I think it’s weird. Maybe I should go put myself in the corner?
Monday
Shining example of Art Nouveau here! In many ways, the whole movement was about the feminine ideal: flowing, feminine lines and ethereal idealizations. This bronze sculpture encapsulates both ideas in a very classical but (for the times) modernized way.
Sunday
This, in and of itself, is a very simple image – both stylistically and color-wise. There is nothing complex or challenging about it. However, in a room full of paintings, it is the one that draws you in and tugs you across the way to look at it. It radiates peaceful serenity and the gentle harmony of a world that is at rest before the oncoming storm of a new day.
Saturday
Pointing out an important distinction between yesterday’s sculpture and today’s sculpture: yesterday’s was made by a woman and today’s by a man. Yesterday’s was fully clothed; today’s has a breast hanging out. It’s pretty much like that across the board when you put artwork side by side: even nudes of the same relative time period are generally partially or artfully draped more often in female-driven works v. male-driven ones. Also, I’m not sure what a boob hanging out has to do with faith as a virtue, even in a classical sense of morality, so I’ll just leave that hanging out there like the proverbial elephant in the room.