"Bernini Sculpting in Clay" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

“You need to draw using your eye-that is, imprint everything in your mind-and always make sketches and drawings of your different ideas…”

So said sculptor and architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) in 1673.  Bernini is best known for his dramatic sculptures that adorn his native city of Rome. Bernini is credited with starting the Baroque movement in sculpture, a hallmark of which is his masterpiece “Ecstasy of Saint Theresa”created in 1652.  This piece can be viewed in the Cornaro Chapel, in the church Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome.

                   "Ecstasy of St. Theresa", 1652, Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome.

When you see Bernini’s theatrical and life like sculptures it is natural to wonder what his process was. In December I saw a comprehensive exhibition that shed light on the way Bernini worked.  The exhibition was “Bernini Sculpting inClay” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and it featured 39 terracotta models, or “three-dimensional sketches”, created by the the master.  These small clay models are bold, expressive and animated. Numerous drawings accompany the models and aid in understanding Bernini’s thought process.

                         Terracotta bozetto for "Ecstasy of St. Theresa", 1647-1652.

One of the most impressive “bozettos” in the show is a lion modeled for the “Fountain of Four Rivers” (1651) in Piazza Navona in Rome.  As Bernini suggests in the above quote he modeled the lion from his "mind’s eye", a naturalistic lion exaggerated in its anatomy and expression!

              Terracotta bozetto for the Lion on the "Fountain of Four Rivers", 1649-1650.

The largest terracotta in the show is a bozetto for the “Fountain of the Moor”, 1655, Piazza Navona, Rome. This dramatic, twisting piece embodies the energy of the figure and highlights Bernini’s way of describing textures-muscle, skin, hair, shell, dolphin and scales.  

                          Terracotta bozetto for "Fountain of the Moor" 1653.

It has been suggested that Bernini made 1000s of these terracotta sculptures, however not considering them finished works of art, but rather ‘sketches” he didn’t preserve them.  Only 52 remain intact.

For more info on Bernini’s life view this video from the Simon Schama BBC series “The Power of Art”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95_7l87prmI

I recommend the exhibition catalog "Bernini Sculpting in Clay" by C.D. Dickerson, III, Anthony Sigel and Ian Wardropper.

Michelangelo's "David-Apollo" at the National Gallery of Art

On Friday I had the privilege of seeing Michelangelo’s sculpture ”David-Apollo” (1530) at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.  This beautiful marble sculpture is on loan from the Museo Nazionale del Bargello, in Florence, to celebrate 2013, the Year of Italian Culture.  The name of the sculpture alludes to the conflicting stories that the figure is David, slayer of Goliath or Apollo, god of light and sun.

                                 Michelangelo's "David-Apollo", marble, 1530.

                                       Michelangelo's "David-Apollo" Detail

Michelangelo (1474-1564) was a master of the High Renaissance and best known for his colossal masterpiece “David” (1501-1504) which dominates the Galleria dell’ Accademia in Florence. Michelangelo is considered to be one of the greatest artists of all time.  His creations in painting, sculpture, architecture and drawing are among the greatest masterpieces of Western art.

                                  Michelangelo's "David", marble, 1501-1504

While “David” is a large, highly polished piece the “David-Apollo” is an unfinished, smaller than life size sculpture.  This unfinished quality allows the viewer insight into Michelangelo’s process.  According to the National Gallery of Art,  Michelangelo used a point chisel to rough out the forms and a claw chisel to refine the figure.  The roughened areas formed with the point chisel can be seen on the back of the figure and the tree stump.  This juxtaposition of the refined and roughened marble later inspired 19^th century French artist Auguste Rodin.  Below is one of Rodin’s sculptures to demonstrating this technique.

                                    Auguste Rodin, "Galatea", marble, 1889

While Michelangelo posed his “David” in a position of contrapposto, “David-Apollo” displays a twisting pose called serpentinata. 

I highly recommend a visit to the National Gallery Art before March 3, 21013 when “David-Apollo” returns to Florence.

"Anatomy/Academy" exhibition at Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts

On Sunday I went to Philadelphia to see an exhibition called "Anatomy/Academy, Philadelphia Nexus of Art and Science". The exhibition was at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PaFa). PaFa is the first art school and museum in the US, founded in 1805 by several artists including Charles Willson Peale, and sculptor William Rush. Past students include luminaries such as Thomas Eakins (who was also an influential teacher), Mary Cassatt, Maxfield Parrish, Cecilia Beaux and John Sloan.



Interior view of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.

The exhibition "Anatomy /Academy" includes an eclectic collection of works by many artists including Thomas Eakins. One of the exhibition highlights is Eakins' brilliant masterpiece the "Portrait of Dr. Samuel D. Gross" also know as the "Gross Clinic". Thomas Eakins dissection drawings of horses, cats, dogs and humans are including along with his notes such as one critiquing "Gray's Anatomy"'s depiction of the teres major muscle. A series of casts made from the cadaver of a young, muscular man who died suddenly are also on view.



"Portrait of Dr. Samuel D. Gross" by Thomas Eakins, 1875.

Among the highlights for me was a series of large painted wooden sculptures by William Rush created for the famous anatomist Dr. Caspar Wistar to use for teaching. My favorite was a enormous sphenoid bone that looks like a modern sculpture. The sphenoid bone, is a cranial bone shaped like a butterfly, and is among my favorite bones.



Sphenoid bone sculpture by William Rush, wood and paint, 1808.

There is a companion exhibition to "Anatomy/Academy" also at PaFa and it is called "Anatomy Now". This exhibition includes works by modern artists who include or react to anatomy in some way. Featured in this show were works by Phillip Pearlstein, Patricia Traub, Michael Grimaldi and Roberto Osti.



Roberto Osti's drawing from the "Anatomy Now" exhibit.

Both these exhibits close on April 17, 2011.