Skip to main content

Among the Italians, with Antonio Canova

Image
By
Screeeee!
This is what I sound like when I get excited. And what am I excited about, you ask? That today I'm covering one of my favorite pieces - and sculptors - of all time, Antonio Canova. I'm so tempted to put up a pic of the best first, but you know...last the best of all the game, right? Restraining myself with every fiber of my being, the first thing I will do is introduce you to Canova.

 
This is a self-portrait of Canova from Wikipedia (at first I thought, hmm, he's kind of handsome in his own right, but when I saw another less-attractive painting of him thought he must've been portraying himself in a flattering light). Canova was born in the Republic of Venice, his father died before he was three and his mother remarried and left him with his grandparents, which turned out to be a good thing, because they were loving and kind people.
After Canova spent his early life studying, he got to work. When nine years had passed, he learned the art of stone carving of the marble found in the Carrara mountains in Italy. This is where his work gets good.

He did several different works of women in dancing poses, and many of them are just called Dancer or Girl Dancing. They're all very beautiful, and I especially like this one. The gesture is halfway between passive and aggressive, as if caught in-between poses or movement. Canova had a way with the form, making it sort of soft and subtle, and letting the fabric drape over it in such a way that it doesn't detract from the beauty of the figure.

 
The Penitent Magdeline is one of my favorite pieces, and one that I recently discovered. I hadn't ever seen this, and when I saw my husband looking at it asked who did it. He gave me one of those, "Are you serious?" looks and told me Canova did it. He knows I should know that. Everything about this sculpture screams vulnerable, humble, and opening herself to God who can take and heal her. Maybe it speaks to me for that reason alone, that I have found myself before in a similar position. The word that comes to me here is Hope.

 
 
This is the sculpture of Hebe, the goddess of youth in Greek mythology. The background is, of course, the Hermitage, which you can tell just by looking at the design and gold leafing on the walls. What a perfect place to display marble sculpture of Canova's talent!
 
 
Ah, the icing on the cake! There's the hermitage again, in the background. I had the opportunity to see this in person back in 2001, and it was amazing. My husband saw another copy more recently in the Louvre. This is by far his most well-known piece, and you can surely see why. It is an incredibly romantic sculpture, one that even inspired me to write a short story about Cupid & Psyche.
 
 
Here's another view (this one from the Louvre). It's so timeless, isn't it? If Canova was trying to convince us of true love, he succeeded with this one. Absolutely fantastic.
 
Make sure to check out some of Canova's other works including The Three Graces, Theseus and the Minotaur (again, subtle in a good way), and the Tomb of Duchess Maria Christina of Saxony Teschen.
 
Until next time, I'll be deciding which Italian artist to cover next. Have an amazing day!

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Focus: Immortality

By
Several years ago Mike created Outside the Circle, which you can read about on a previous blog. Around the same time, he created this statue: Immortality Part of the story is mine. Shortly before Mike created this piece, I had my first miscarriage. What they say is true: you never understand how difficult it is until you go through one yourself. I remember talking to Mike about the sacrifices that so many women make. We give up our bodies for years at a time. Our bodies sometimes fail us. Our minds suffer when things don't go as planned. Emotions are high, and so are the stakes. This statue, aptly named "Immortality," is the embodiment of those sacrifices. Not only do women bear children, but we don't bear children. We adopt and we foster care, and we babysit our nieces and nephews. We lose sleep. We toss and turn. We worry. We lose our marbles. Sometimes, women can look down at themselves and see only stretchmarks. We a wreck of the person we used to
Post a Comment
Read more

Now: Up at the Springville Museum of Art

By
It's finished! Isn't it always nice when you can say something like that? With all the work that went into this relief, Mike is ready for vacation. Even the casting process put him through a physical and emotional ride. The work that goes into creating something, from concept to finished product, is amazingly strenuous and impressive. When I try the process myself I tend to give up, so I have a tremendous respect for artists in general. Last night we went to the opening of the Fall Show at the Springville Museum of Art. There were a LOT of people there. I think they ran out of cups for water. But it was a nice evening, with beautiful art, and great people. Mike has received continuous awards in this show for the last...seven years? Eight, maybe? This is how you know that he works hard and puts a lot of himself into his pieces. Not only is he good, but he uses his talents and knowledge for good. He creates pieces that convey messages about important qualities and eleme
Post a Comment
Read more

Now: Time for Wax

By
Though my post is a little late, cut me some slack. It's raining and gorgeous outside, and we've been enjoying it. Might sound crazy, but I am so glad this summer is over.  Tomorrow we head to Baer Bronze to check the metal. Before that, Mike had to go out there to check the wax:  Mostly, this blog is going to be in photos. Because the photos are awesome and speak for themselves. When I look at this wax, I'm not sure what the purpose is. Here's what I know: Mike's pieces are cast using the Lost Wax method, which means the piece is cast in wax first, remolded, and then when the bronze is poured the wax is burned away. Hence, the lost wax method.  This is an amazing shot. What I like about this broken wax piece is the detail you can see. This is pretty much what the bronze will look like. You know, minus the attachments on the bottom.  There are some of the pieces that had to be removed and cast separately. The wolf is one of my favorite figures from thi
Post a Comment
Read more