Museum Essay #1

         

 

On our trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I came across two sculpture that were made over 800 years apart from one another and they are “ Mask of a Woman with a Large Coil of Plaited Hair” made by Reign of Hadrian, in A.D 117-138, and “ Benjamin Franklin” made by Jean Antonie Houdon in 1778. These sculptures have many similarities and differences.

The first sculpture “ Mask of a Woman with a Large Coil of Plaited Hair” is a sculpture of Empress Sabina and I believe it shows texture because of the rustic appearance of her hair. This sculpture was made of plaster, paint and glass- inlaid eyes. In this sculpture you can see the shadow of her face under the sculpture showing that there is actual light not implied light the colors shown in this sculpture are white, black and shades of gray. I think this sculpture can be considered to be monochromatic because in the shade of her hair and her eyebrows they look like different variations of the same color gray. The focal point of this sculpture is the lady's eyes because it is where the attention is centered and where my eyes were directed to as soon as I saw this sculpture.

The second sculpture “ Benjamin Franklin” was portrayed by a number of french artists. This sculpture is made of marble and is has a smooth surface. It is a portrait of a person. I think this sculpture has visual rhythm because it mostly consist of the same color. The main focal point and emphasis of this sculpture is the eyes of Benjamin Franklin because they are looking away at something and it makes you wonder what the artist was trying to capture.  

Both of these sculpture although they are more than 800 years apart have many similarities to one another. They are both a three dimensional piece of artwork meaning than you can see behind the piece of art and you can touch/feel it. Also they both have symmetrical balance because if you were to fold these works of art in half they will show a mirror image from both sides. Lines are an important part to both of these sculptures and they are used to apply emotion I think that for the sculpture of Empress Sabina they are used to describe sorrow, and for the sculpture of Benjamin Franklin they are used to show confidence and power. There were many reasons why I chose to write about these two sculptures, I really found them interesting because they were so different yet so alike to one another. Overall I really enjoyed our trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.