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Summary

Go to the Met in NYC and pick seven artworks from galleries chosen by Professor Weinberg and write about their physical descriptions. Pick two artworks from the seven and go in depth about them, their history and culture. Afterwards, find a local building that has architectural elements that are cov...

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David 1 Claudine David ARHT 105 07 Professor Miriam Weinberg May 1, 2021 Metropolitan Museum of Art Art is the oldest subject in the entire world. It has been around even before written history. The first humans have communicated by drawing images in the dirt or on the walls of the caves. They sculpted objects that usually served as practical or religious purposes. And they planned and constructed fascinating buildings that awed others. Museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City house these works that span thousands of years, ready for people to look at and admire. In fact, the Met is one of the largest and finest art museums ever built and millions of people visit every year to view the growing collection. Because of this, seven objects at the Met have been observed and noted and can serve as examples for their respective time periods. The first object is from the Mesopotamian gallery, more specifically the Ancient Near East Art section, in room 403. It is called the Stele of Ushumgal believed to be made around 2900 to 2700 BC. It is a large stele that appears to be made from a stone of some sort. It is rectangular and looks slightly weathered. The front side is a rectangular shape carved into the stele. Inside the rectangle is a medium relief of a profile view of a man. He is standing by a tall structure about his height. The rectangular shape appears to enclose him in a frame, which looks like a depiction of a scene. There is inscription above the scene but outside it. On the left and right sides of the stele are also medium reliefs of figures enclosed in carved rectangular shapes as

David 2 well. The entire stele looks like a brown or tan color, which is probably from the medium it’s made in. The second object is from the Egyptian gallery, in room 101. It is an ornamental comb decorated with rows of animals. It is from around 3200 to 3100 BC and made of ivory (MMA, Ornamental Comb). The color of the comb is, like the Stele, a brown or tan color. The teeth on the bottom appear to be missing, possibly broken off or from environmental factors. On both sides of the comb, there are five rows of animals with the rows following a pattern sequence; one row has the animals facing one way and the next row below it the animals are facing the other way, then the next row is back to facing the one way and so on. For instance, on one side, on the top row the elephants (that are stepping on serpents) are facing left then the next row right below it, the storks are facing right. It is reverse on the other side, with the top row elephants facing right and so on. The animals shown from top to bottom in rows are elephants (stepping on serpents), storks and a giraffe, hyenas, cattle, and possibly boars. The animals are depicted as low reliefs. The comb is small, almost pocket-sized. Looking inside the case that the comb is in, there is a thermometer inside and it is at about 70° F. Egypt is located near the equator so the temperatures there are high. Artwork made in Egypt was made in hot environments and have been exposed to the extreme heat temperatures for thousands of years. Now that the comb is in the Met, which is in a much colder environment than Egypt, exposing it in drastic changes of temperatures could possibly damage it. The third object is from the Greek gallery, in room 150. It is a bronze statue of a man from about the mid-2nd to the 1st century BC. This statue is tall, almost life-size to a real human, and stands on a platform (not part of the art). The head and his left hand are unfortunately missing. The man is depicted in contrapposto, which is a term that means the figure is in a

David 3 relaxed asymmetrical pose: the shoulder and hips are turned in different directions. He extends his right hand out in a simple gesture as an invitation. His left hand would have been relaxed at his side. The folds of the drapery are beautifully sculpted and appears realistic. Since the statue is tall, the specific dimensions are 73 inches in height (MMA, Bronze statue of a man). Upon closer inspection, worn marks and possibly chips are evident. The fourth object can be found in the Roman gallery, in room 150, the same room as the bronze statue. It is a carved limestone pillar from around 550 to 525 BC. According to the museum label, each side of the pillar is carved with a low relief of a figure: A young woman holding a lotus flower, attended by two tiny winged youths hovering above her head; a man in a long robe who wears a wreath and holds a laurel branch and a small lyre; Bes, the animal-headed Egyptian god, and the legs of a feline, presumably a sphinx; and a man who wears a wreath and a long robe and leads a sacrificial goat. (MMA, Carved limestone pillar) All the figures are in profile view. The pillar has a square-shaped capital and the overall structure has visible worn markings, again possibly due to environmental factors. The fifth object is from the Medieval gallery, in room 304. It is the Tabernacle of Scenes from the Infancy of Jesus from around 1250 to 1300 AD. This tiny sculpture is 9.7 centimeters tall and consists of a rectangular form with hinged double doors on its sides which can be opened or closed. On the doors are scenes carved into the ivory material where high relief figures are placed; the figures in the scenes appear to be interacting with each other. The main point of focus, however, is in the center figure, the Madonna and infant Jesus, as they are about three times as large as the figures on the doors. The entire sculpture is a polyptych. The ivory material looks worn and cracked a little. The museum label reads that it has traces of gilding and

David 4 polychromy which must mean that this sculpture was originally painted with a substance that resembles gold, as well as other colors (Tabernacle of Scenes from the Infancy of Jesus). Because of this, it is possible that over time, the colors faded, leaving cracks on the material because of the paint. Given the tiny size of the sculpture, it is possible that it could have been used for travel. The sixth object is from the Byzantine gallery, in room 301. It is a gold vessel from around 2000 to 1500 BC in central Europe. The vessel looks lightweight and as if sculpted by manipulating a sheet of gold. Lines have been incised into the sheet, forming patterns. There are embossed shapes on the vessel as well, which is when the artist marks a surface with a slightly raised design. According to the museum label, this vessel is one of the six surviving examples of Early European Bronze Age art. Not much is known about it but it has been speculated that it could have been placed to mark a grave (MMA, Gold Vessel). The seventh and last object is from the Islamic section, more specifically the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia. It is the Mihrab, which is a prayer niche from around 1354 to 1355 AD. It is a mosaic of polychrome-glazed cut tiles on stonepaste body then set into mortar (MMA, Mihrab (Prayer Niche)). The first thing you will notice is how tall it is. The dominating color of this niche is blue, along with white and tan (or gold?). It is patterned and Arabic writings fill the space: there is writing along the borders and on the cavedin portion of the niche. My first thought to the niche was that the caved-in part was probably where a statue or sculpture would be placed, the label instead informed me that the piece was meant for prayer. Looking over the seven objects, two of them brought interest, which were the Egyptian hair comb and the Medieval tabernacle.

David 5 In Ancient Egypt, there was no word for art, in fact the ancient Egyptians didn’t think of their work as art. Their creations had a practical or religious purpose. Practical items such as bowls were for everyday use and religious items like statues were seen as divine and also served a spiritual purpose, which was to honor the gods and help the deceased find their way into the afterlife. Religious objects were also considered a connection between the real world and the spirit world (Facts on File). For the comb, as mentioned, it served two purposes: practical and religious. Practical because it was used to straighten hair and maintain it, religious because it was used for rituals. The elephants on the top row probably carries a symbolic meaning. According to the Met website, “The mythologies of many African peoples associate elephants and serpents with the creation of the universe.” (“Hair Comb Decorated with Rows of Wild Animals”) The top row may be symbolic of a deity that has created all animals on earth. For the pocket-sized Medieval tabernacle, the Madonna and Child has a static and frontal composition while the figures are in profile view. This piece is different from the other Madonna and Child pieces of later times. While later versions show a more angular style, this one has a more fluent style. The two figures look unusually different than the later renditions of them; because of that, it is also likely that this piece was created in a more provincial workshop (Tabernacle Polyptych with the Madonna and Child and Scenes from the Life of Christ). The piece originally had four pinnacles on top and a larger pinnacle crowning the center of the roof. As mentioned earlier, this piece was made around 1250 to 1300 AD. This was around the long era of the Age of Faith, or previously called the Dark Ages, in which it was believed that artists lost or abandoned artistic techniques. Over time, further research proved this false, as the art was revealed to be rich, dynamic, colorful, and innovative. Symbolism was also a focus for depicting spiritual truths in the work and often times it was more important than realistic

David 6 depictions of figures. In this polyptych, again as mentioned earlier, the Madonna (also called the Virgin Mary) and Child (Christ) are three times as large as the relief figures in the scenes on the doors. However, given the year of creation, this was supposedly during the Gothic era, which is within the Age of Faith. The Gothic era admired stone sculptures because they could withstand weather conditions since they were going to be placed outside churches, monasteries, and convents (Facts on File). With this tiny tabernacle piece, perhaps it was meant to be carried around and thus ivory served as the best medium for the sculpture to be made in. Because of the many changes in art that have flourished throughout the generations, it’s no doubt that one work influenced another work and so forth. Artists not only create art but they also take their influences or anything that intrigues them and incorporate them into their art. Over the years, artists studying the past artists can take those past ideas and put them into their own work. This especially stands true for architecture, as beautiful buildings capture people’s attention most definitely. In fact, many regular local buildings may sport a few hints of influence from historical architecture. One example of a regular and local building is the Menlo Park Mall in Edison, NJ. The entire mall has a few hints of Greek and Roman influence in its architecture, three examples would be the columns, the arched ceilings, and the overall layout plan. The columns are rather plain white (they don’t have lines running down the base) but they have a similar look like the Doric order columns in ancient Greece. The columns are in a row on the second floor and are similar to the interior of the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Ravenna, Italy. In the mall, the arched ceilings hover over the shoppers and have square indents in them. The arches replicate the ceiling arches of Late Antiquity churches; these ones in the mall however, as previously mentioned, look like the arches of the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare. For the overall plan of the mall, it is a nod to Greek architecture such as the Parthenon and Pantheon, in which if a

David 7 person is standing inside, will see columns along the sides (for the mall, instead of nothing between the columns, there are stores). With the Doric-inspired columns and the ceiling arches that look Antique-esque, this truly makes Menlo Park Mall a historically-inspired building. With just seven example pieces of work from different time periods and the influence of past architecture into modern architecture, it is easy and fascinating to see the different works of art throughout history. As human civilization moves forward, more artists will contribute to the art world and more ideas will be inspired by past works. Knowledge, information, and ideas will be passed down and those listening will turn them into tangible works that touch the souls and emotions of humanity, which will no doubt make its mark in history. As historians continue to make new discoveries, findings, and research, human civilization will continue to make more creations, thus, keeping the tradition of what it means to be human.

David 8 Works Cited Beetz, Kirk H. “Art in Medieval Europe.” Encyclopedia of Society and Culture in the Medieval World, Facts On File, 2008. Ancient and Medieval History, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=17309&itemid=WE49&articleId=225221. Accessed 19 Mar. 2018. Bronze statue of a man. Bronze. ca. mid-2nd-1st century B.C. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Web. 17 Mar. 2018. Hair Comb Decorated with Rows of Wild Animals. Ivory. ca. 3200–3100 B.C. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Web. 17 Mar. 2018. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum label for Bronze statue of a man, New York City, 10 March 2018. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum label for Carved limestone pillar, New York City, 10 March 2018. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum label for Gold Vessel, New York City, 10 March 2018. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum label for Ornamental Comb, New York City, 10 March 2018. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum label for Mihrab (Prayer Niche), New York City, 10 March 2018. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum label for Tabernacle Polyptych with the Madonna and Infant Jesus, New York City, 10 March 2018. O'Neal, Michael J. “Art in Ancient Egypt.” Encyclopedia of Society and Culture in the Ancient World, Facts On File, 2007. Ancient and Medieval History,

David 9 online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=17309&itemid=WE49&articleId=226739. Accessed 31 Mar. 2018. Tabernacle Polyptych with the Madonna and Child and Scenes from the Life of Christ. Ivory. ca. 1275–1300. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

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Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Stele of Ushumgal

Ornamental Comb

Bronze statue of a man

Carved limestone pillar

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Tabernacle of Scenes from the Infancy of Jesus

Gold vessel

Mihrab (Prayer Niche)

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Figure 2 Menlo Park Mall interior

Figure 3 Menlo Park Mall interior 2

Figure 4 One of the Doric-inspired columns...