The Getty (Extra Credit)

The Getty Villa and Museum

During this semester while I have been taking this art history class I have also been taking a beginners stage design class. We were required to go on a field trip to The Getty Villa for a play called Prometheus Bound. While there we had the time to go through the entire museum as well. I took multiple pictures while I was there because I knew we would need them if we wanted extra credit for this class. I came across many interesting pieces, most of them being greek influenced statues, but the main exhibit was showing art work from the ancient egyptian time period. I found this specific exhibition to be so interesting. Not only was there pure gold jewelry, and ancient war weapons, but they had an entire mummy on display. Going into this day I wasn't expecting to have the opportunity I did, but I am so happy I went into the museum because I got to see some amazing art and have my first museum experience be in one of the most popular museums in california.

(Picture taken by me while at the Getty Thursday, 19 September , 2013)

Cycladic sculpture made of marble: Pregnant Female Figure, attributed to the Schuster Master, about 2400 B.C. 16 in. high. The J. Paul Getty Museum, 90.AA.114

This female figure with crossed arms is typical of the sculpture of the Cyclades in the mid 2000s B.C. Scholars have divided Cycladic sculpture into groups indicating stylistic and chronological advancements. This nearly complete figure has stylistic traits of both the Spedos and Dokathismata types, such as the obvious curve of the top of the head, the deep groove between the legs, and the prominent angular nose. The somewhat swollen belly of the figure may indicate pregnancy. As preserved today, most Cycladic figures appear almost minimalist, but their original effect with painted facial features, hair, and occasionally jewelry, was quite different. On this figure, only traces of red paint remain on the forehead. The reason I chose to look deeper into this sculpture was because when I was admiring it I had a hard time imagining it being anything but just a small sculpture. To me it looked like it lacked detail and imagination, I found myself wondering if this was the only one made or if it was once part of a large group all meant to serve a purpose or to be seen as one whole piece. Sadly I didn’t find a whole lot about this specific figure, but I did find basic background and I will know if i come across any Cycladic sculptures in the future and hopefully they can lead me to more information on the individual pieces.

(Pictures taken by me while at the Getty Thursday, 19 September , 2013)

The Mummy of Herakleides, which is a Roman-Egyptian mummy burried in Egypt in about 150 A.D, emphasizes the traditions of both the Roman art style and the Egyptian tradition of life after death and their practices of caring for the dead and protecting them in the afterlife. This Romano-Egyptian mummy combines the millennia-old Egyptian tradition of mummification of the dead with the Roman tradition of individualized portraiture. The blending of these two traditions was characteristic of the ethnically and culturally diverse population of the Roman province of Egypt. The Roman style of portraiture, is done with most the emphasis on the upper body and expression of the face and gestures, this being very evident in this depiction of Herakleides.