Wednesday 5 May 2010

‘Hercules the Archer’ – Antoine Bourdelle

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A student to sculptor Auguste Rodin, and mentor to mythologist Joseph Campbell, Bourdelle’s modelling of Hercules in his sixth labour dramatically captures the hero’s brutal power and almost inhuman determination.

1107964446_e2e738b60c_b The Musee d’Orsay website describes it:

    “Not only the hero's victory over the monsters, but also Bourdelle's victory over his own high-spirited inspiration, this work is remarkable both for its tension and for its balanced construction. The dynamics come from the interaction of solids and voids, brutal force and balance. The nude figure denotes power, high-strung energy, pulled taut between the arm bending the bow and the foot braced against the rock. The references to primitive Greek sculpture and Roman art – the almond shaped eyes, the nose extending in a straight line from the forehead, jutting cheekbones and brows – act as catalyst for a modern approach.”

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3 comments:

Dave Mann said...

Why are these subjects almost always naked? I have been to art galleries all over the world (The Louvre, Tate etc) and it seems that western classical art is amost exclusively composed of huge collections of tits and genitalia flapping around all over the place.

If I was an archer I would certainly want at least a loincloth or something to protect anainst twangback in case the bowstring broke.....

RosieD said...

"that western classical art is amost exclusively composed of huge collections of tits and genitalia flapping around all over the place"

Dave, I agree with you on that. Art seems to be about cocks & pussies and nothing interesting to look at. I am not an artist, but if I want to see some cocks, then I just call my husband at work to come home for lunch. I am annoyed at artists who have nothing creative to paint except cocks & pussies. Pathetic.

Peter Cresswell said...

@RosieD: The expression "pearls before swine" spring to mind. And the word "prude."

@Dave: May I offer you William Blake: "“Art can never exist without naked beauty displayed.”