"Bronze, Marble and Glass"

Since the semester is officially over, projects and reactions are more challenging. For our last project as well as field trip reaction, we had to pretend that we were hired as curators for the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the met as many people call it. Our mission to conserve the job was that we needed to look for three different sections of the museum and explain how they relate to each other, but we also needed to find a specific theme. This was the hardest part because it is easy to look for  different artworks in a gigantic museum such as met, but when it comes to find similar things like their mediums is just a headache in your first day of work. I proposed myself to look for something that could be a little different to what we see everyday when we talk about art. So, I spend a couple of hours trying to find my theme which was bronze, marble and glass in the sections of Greek and Roman Art, Egyptian Art, and Ancient Near Eastern Art.

The themes of my exhibition are bronze, marble, and glass. I choose this three types of medium because my exhibition is based on pieces that were found long time ago and these were the most common mediums during that time. I expect the viewer of my exhibition to find something that when they see it, they do not refer to it as art but as something that they just considered old or simply not art. Actually, the dates that people are going to find in the exhibition are ca. 625-600 B.C or the 1st century B.C., meaning that they are super old. Also none of these pieces will have their main author because the majority of them were acquisitions and others were found. Also when I found them I was not surprised with the time these pieces were supposedly made because that was part of what I had in mind.

The three pieces that I choose were the "Marble Stele (grave marker) of a youth and little girl" that is a tall figure in marble, and there is a woman with a little girl, also on top the of the figure there is like a dog or lion f with wings and a human face. The second piece was the "Marble Statue of a Kouros (youth)" from the Egyptian Art section which shows a young boy naked. Finally, the last piece came from the Ancient Near Eastern Art section of the museum which is the "Marble Sarcophagus with the Triumph of Dionysos and the Season" where there are a lot of naked people and animals. In the other hand, the three pieces that I choose obviously share a similarity in their appearance because they are all naked and two of them have animals. Also they are made with the same medium which is marble. However, I do not think they share the same meaning at all because for instance the second piece is the little boy, and he is totally alone, but the third piece even though they are naked as the second one there are about 30 people and some animals. Moreover, a different similarity that I found among these three pieces are that their authors enjoyed nude sculptures.

In conclusion, I know that my plans to keep my job were a little over the limits, but I think that after my efforts looking through many different section of the  met and finding the same medium for all the pieces, my boss Mr. Richter would be satisfied.  I hope you all enjoy my "Bronze, Marble and Glass exhibition" as I did.

"Bronze, Marble and Glass Exhibition"

By: Andreina Urena.

 

"Bronze Statue of an Aristocratic Boy."

27 B.C. - A.D 14.

Said to be from Rhodes (MMA 1938).

Greek and Roman Art.

 

"Bronze Statue of a Horse."

Late 2nd - 1st century B.C.

Said to come from the sea near Mahdira.

Greek and Roman Art.

 

 "Smiting god, Wearing an Egyptian Ated Crown."

 Ca. 15th - 14th century B.C.

Acquired by the museum in 1986.

Egyptian Art.

 

"Bronze Statuette of a Horseman."

1000 B.C - A.D 1.

Acquired in 1809.

Egyptian Art.

 

"Center Rod Tripod."

1250 - 1050 B.C.

From Cyprus.

Ancient Near Eastern Art.

 

"Bronze Mirror with a Support in the front of a Nude Girl."

2nd half of the 6th century B.C.

Said to be from Southern Italy.

Ancient Near the Eastern Art.

 "Marble Statue of a Kouros (youth)."

Ca. 590 - 580 B.C.

Said to be from Attica.

Egyptian Art.

 

"Marble Head of a Woman."

Late 16th century B.C.

From Cyprus.

Egyptian Art.

 

"Marble stele (grave marker) of a Youth and Little girl."

Ca. 530 - B.C.

Said to be from Africa.

Greek and Roman Art.

"Marble Sarcophagus with the Triumph of Dionysos and the Season."

A.D 260 - 270.

Presumably found in Rome.

Ancient Near and Eastern Art.

 

"Glass Hexagonal Amphoriskos Signed by Ennion"

1st half of the 1st century A.D.

Said to be from Potamia, near Golgoi, Cyprus.

Greek and Roman Art.

 

"Glass Gladiator Cup."

Ca. A.D. 50 -80.

Said to have been found at Montagnole  (near Chambery, France).

Greek and Roman Art.

 "Stripe Mosaic Glass Bowl."

Early 1st century B.C.

Said to be from near Emesa, Syria.

Ancient Near Eastern Art.

 

"Glass Bowl Fragment."

1st century B.C

Acquisition.

Egyptian Art.

"Glass Alabastrom (perfume vase)."

Ca. 625 - 600 B.C

From Cyprus.

Ancient Near Eastern Art.