Sculpturally Aware in Western Civilization

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Art History Week

Art-making is not about telling the truth but making the truth felt.― Christian Boltanski


It's true that we express ourselves through our art. Some do it through painting, some through verse, and some through another ancient art - sculpture. Sculpture has had a place in society since the time of the ancient Greeks and Egyptians. It has helped us to understand the importance of historical events, and helped archaeologists map the movement and change of cultures over time.

While its modern aspect is generally simple expression, this particular art form has historically been used to enhance a supplicant's worship. In Asia, it has long been a means of exploring Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. The Greeks and Romans, as students learn in their courses on mythology, sculpted stone monuments of their pantheon. They stood guard outside the temples to watch over those entering, and within the temples to make certain sacrifices were given properly. The Egyptians used sculpture not only to honor their gods, but also when they buried their kings.
Infoplease, Bibliography. Infoplease. Web. 14 April 2015.

Many of the ancient civilizations used sculpture to provide form to the abstract. A god known only as some invisible being could be given a face if not a name, or could easily be associated with a shape. This is evident in every religious culture, regardless of origin.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.

The Golden Calf


If you're of the Jewish, Christian, or Muslim faiths, you've heard the story: Moses ascended the mount to get the commandments from God, and when he came back down, the people were building a golden calf to worship. It's one of the oldest references to sculpture that many children are taught on Sundays. And it's important that they're taught to look on sculpture as something to be avoided. While other cultures sculpted great monuments to their leaders, the ancestors of three of the world's major religions avoided expressing themselves through this medium. Many still do today, and it can all be traced back to the incident at the foot of the mount with the golden calf. So to ignore its role in the history of this art form would be detrimental to a study of the history of sculpture.
The Holy Bible, King James Version. Cambridge Edition: 1769; King James Bible Online, 2015. 14 April 2015.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015

Why would it be important to limit the study of sculpture? As a species, we attempt to give form to that we don't understand - we try to make the truth felt. So it's counter-intuitive to restrict our means of doing this. Yet the decision to do so has molded the growth of this art form in Western culture.

Death and Rebirth



After the fall of the Roman Empire, the West was lost. While life and civilization continued to grow and develop in the East, Western culture fell into disrepair. No where is this more evident than in the art, for it is through our art that we represent our culture. The Germanic tribes that conquered Rome did not bring an artistic culture with them. For the most part, until Charlemagne, sculpture was limited to architectural pursuits. Even after his time, sculpture was stilted until the time of the Crusades, when - despite the dark nature of war - artistic reliquaries were brought from the East to the West.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.
Gascoigne, Bamber. "History of Sculpture", HistoryWorld. From 2001, ongoing. 14 April 2015.
Farber, Allen. "Early Christian Art", Khan Academy. Web. 14 April 2015.

Interest was renewed in sculpting, new techniques were developed for new materials being created, and apprenticeships and patronage in the art became something that the Christian church embraced. A religion which once saw sculpture as dangerous encouraged its growth. It's important to note that at this point, the higher sculptures associated with the Renaissance had not yet developed. Though the art was no longer limited to just simplistic forms associated with architecture, it was not yet realistic in its shape and detail.
Infoplease, Bibliography. Infoplease. Web. 14 April 2015.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.


Separation of Church and Art


With the Renaissance in Europe came the names of sculptors every student of art history learns: Michelangelo, Donatello, and Lucca della Robbia. Their works were inspirational and motivational, and they brought a more human side to the Christian deity. It was this human side that came to the attention of those who had long been fed up with the state of the Roman Catholic Church, and their displeasure quickly manifested itself in a far-reaching way.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.
Gascoigne, Bamber. "History of Sculpture", HistoryWorld. From 2001, ongoing. 14 April 2015.

Martin Luther and his 95 Theses are a pivotal part of both secular and Christian history. The complaints he made against Church practices included the reliance on artifacts both within the construction of cathedrals and within the services themselves. Images within the Church could encourage idolatry, which all Christians agree is a sin.
"Martin Luther and the 95 Theses", History.com. Web. 14 April 2015.
History of Sculpture. Encyclopedia of Art. Web. 14 April 2015.

It was at this point that the world became divided from sculpture. While the Catholic Church did indeed continue supporting artists and their works through patronage, other versions of Christianity began cropping up - ones which did not allow sculptures and desired plain architecture. Despite the attempts of Christian "radicals" such as John Calvin, sculpture continued to thrive in Western culture.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.
History of Sculpture. Encyclopedia of Art. Web. 14 April 2015.

Art has always reflected life, and this period of awkward growth was no different. Sculptors portrayed the events of their times through often terrifyingly realistic works such as Giambologna's Rape of the Sabines. Their works continued to reflect religious ideals, especially throughout the period known as the Counter Reformation. Sculpture - indeed all forms of art - was a very influential method of encouraging supplicants to return to the Church, and it continued until the 1700s.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.
History of Sculpture. Encyclopedia of Art. Web. 14 April 2015.
Infoplease, Bibliography. Infoplease. Web. 14 April 2015.

Busted Again


Roman art in the ancient world had at one point centered around busts of emperors and statesmen. This form of art took hold once more, with sculptures moving away from reliefs depicting events of Church history and faith as well as full-size likenesses of saints. The idea of being immortalized has long captured human interest - something that has continued to the current day.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.
Gascoigne, Bamber. "History of Sculpture", HistoryWorld. From 2001, ongoing. 14 April 2015.

Though it began largely in France, it spread quickly throughout the Western world. Sculptors became intrigued by non-religious topics and began turning from the Christian mythos. Though pieces still continued to focus on the human form for quite some time, it was less than a hundred years before a return to more classical architecture as well. Imitation became the order of the day, and for almost one hundred fifty years, sculptors largely produced works that hardly varied from classical Roman offerings.
Gascoigne, Bamber. "History of Sculpture", HistoryWorld. From 2001, ongoing. 14 April 2015.

But as we all know - being deviants - monotony only gives rise to a love for something different, and such was the case when Rodin came on the scene. Though some sculptors were moving in a decidedly different direction from the return to the roots of Western civilization, the focus on nature had not gained much ground. When Rodin's sculptures rose to popularity, a new age of unique thought entered the world of art.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.
Post, Chandler Rathfon. A History of European and American Sculpture from the Early Christian Period to the Present Day, Vol. II. 150-152. Harvard University Press, Cambridge. 1921.
Infoplease, Bibliography. Infoplease. Web. 14 April 2015.


Experiments Catalyze Change


With Rodin's grand moves from a more traditional form of sculpture into something far more spontaneous in its presentation, he brought new methods of thought to the artists who followed. Rather than being hemmed in by those who had come before, sculptors began experimenting with new media as well as different subjects. Instead of focusing only on the physical, sculpture began moving into representations of thoughts and dreams. Attempts to truly visualize a dream burst from materials that were traditional in their use before moving into the realm of the surreal and sculptures made from materials which aren't considered at all artistic in nature.
Barton, Eleanor Dodge. "The History of Sculpture." The New Book of Knowledge. Web. 14 April 2015.
Infoplease, Bibliography. Infoplease. Web. 14 April 2015.
Post, Chandler Rathfon. A History of European and American Sculpture from the Early Christian Period to the Present Day, Vol. II. 150-152. Harvard University Press, Cambridge. 1921.
History of Sculpture. Encyclopedia of Art. Web. 14 April 2015.

Modern sculpture has truly moved into the realm of making us feel the truth observed by the artist rendering it.




If you've enjoyed this article, please take a moment to look at these lovely sculpted pieces found here on DeviantArt:

Cloak and Dagger MB - Souls by No-Sign-of-Sanity Blind Dead by EvanCampbell Leonardo's brain by TeresAnima
Eel Walker by MarkNewman Consumed by Zillaan

Don’t try to present your art by making other people read or hear or see or touch it; make them feel it. Wear your art like your heart on your sleeve and keep it alive by making people feel a little better.― Charlotte Eriksson


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Leopold002's avatar
An interesting article.