Let me get this out of the way first. OMG! Ancient statues, I now see them so differently. I might even take up snorkeling and head off to the Mediterranean islands. Of perhaps,write a little fiction piece about how those two bearded men statues found their way to a sandy seabed.
Following this Substack is way better than either of the art classes I was required to take in College. I look forward to it. It’s a daily gift.
We studied all these great works in Art History classes, but often not the back stories. They are so important to understanding the provenance and just the pure luck of their discovery...and for those ordinary people who saw their value to humankind. Art is the best mirror on our history and humanity. Thank you.
Yes, Michelangelo had been right. Looking at the two versions it’s so clear that the tensions of the bent arm add tremendous strength to the piece.
Does anyone remember when Saturday Night Live was actually funny? Weekend update: “Tragic news from Paris. Vandals broke into the Louvre Museum and put arms onto the Venus De Milo. Experts are trying to determine if the great work can be restored .”
Thank you for this lovely collection and reflection on ancient statues. Also really appreciated the poetry woven throughout, and learning the origins of your fascinating title.
When I saw Nike in person, I cried. She is so beautiful. I can’t imagine a head that would be beautiful enough to match the rest of her. She looks wet and like the wind is blowing against her. Amazing that she was sculpted from marble. Truly amazing.
When I look at sculpted pieces of art, I am always astonished at their beauty and the immense talent of the sculptor. To create a thing of beauty out of a chunk of metal or marble seems God driven. I think of Mt. Rushmore and the expertise and talent needed to chisel faces out of a mountain! And we do not know who the sculptors of these pieces you highlighted even are. The detail in the faces and the folds of cloth that look so real make me want to reach out and touch. I’m pretty certain that would not be allowed in the museums. Thank you for highlighting sculpture this week.
This post brought tears to my eyes. I am so fortunate to have seen some of these statues in person at the Louvre last year. It was May of 2025, and I lost my love and partner in life in July of that year. I had never been to Paris before, and my wife had been several times. She, at that time, had been in a memory care facility for almost two years. I carried her photo with me to Paris so, in my mind, she was there with me. I wish I had known the history you relate in your post about the statuary. You have made that visit even more meaningful for me. Thank you.
Wow, this is beautiful on so many levels. I visited the Rodin exhibit at the National Gallery of Art in DC last week, and the sense of awe at the sculptures was the same. So beautifully capturing something human--passion, aspiration, beauty, strength, agony. So there's that. The reference to the many potent mythologies we have inherited, particularly Troy, which have their own humanistic beauty in the way they memorialize our humanity on an epic scale. And then the artists--Michelangelo, Keats, Pliny, Rilke, Byron--and words from them that have their own immortality. And finally, the stories of endurance and survival--of the works themselves, of those who tried to hide them, save them, reconstruct them, resurrect them, even though the original makers are gone and unknown and of the stories they represent. Wow. Beauty upon beauty. And I thought the Nat'l Gallery had filled me up!
As I watch pros today—whether they be chefs or artists or carpenters—I say, “It’s all about the tools.” What on earth did they have to work with? Wilton, KitchenAid, X-Acto knives, pre-mixed paint or pre-stretched canvases, Craftsman tools? No way. Amazing and inspirational.
I am a huge fan of Keats and that verse is one of my favorites. I should’ve recognized that your publication comes from it! Perfectly fits the work you do. I know seeing these sculptures in person would be a wonder! I specially now that you’ve shared their stories. I grieve for those we’ll never see, but gratefully cherish those we can because others preserved them for us.
Locally (Chicago) I love to visit “The Fountain of Time” sculpture by Laredo Taft. It offers much of the same midbrain connection to humanity and history.
Let me get this out of the way first. OMG! Ancient statues, I now see them so differently. I might even take up snorkeling and head off to the Mediterranean islands. Of perhaps,write a little fiction piece about how those two bearded men statues found their way to a sandy seabed.
Following this Substack is way better than either of the art classes I was required to take in College. I look forward to it. It’s a daily gift.
Thank you so much Ed! It means the world to me.
Well written! The referenced poetry was wonderful too. I found some new pets to read. Thank you.
We studied all these great works in Art History classes, but often not the back stories. They are so important to understanding the provenance and just the pure luck of their discovery...and for those ordinary people who saw their value to humankind. Art is the best mirror on our history and humanity. Thank you.
Yes, Michelangelo had been right. Looking at the two versions it’s so clear that the tensions of the bent arm add tremendous strength to the piece.
Does anyone remember when Saturday Night Live was actually funny? Weekend update: “Tragic news from Paris. Vandals broke into the Louvre Museum and put arms onto the Venus De Milo. Experts are trying to determine if the great work can be restored .”
Thank you for this lovely collection and reflection on ancient statues. Also really appreciated the poetry woven throughout, and learning the origins of your fascinating title.
This is so beautiful, both the sculptures and the story. Thank you James for all your work. It is a gift to be presented with such beauty.
When I saw Nike in person, I cried. She is so beautiful. I can’t imagine a head that would be beautiful enough to match the rest of her. She looks wet and like the wind is blowing against her. Amazing that she was sculpted from marble. Truly amazing.
When I look at sculpted pieces of art, I am always astonished at their beauty and the immense talent of the sculptor. To create a thing of beauty out of a chunk of metal or marble seems God driven. I think of Mt. Rushmore and the expertise and talent needed to chisel faces out of a mountain! And we do not know who the sculptors of these pieces you highlighted even are. The detail in the faces and the folds of cloth that look so real make me want to reach out and touch. I’m pretty certain that would not be allowed in the museums. Thank you for highlighting sculpture this week.
This post brought tears to my eyes. I am so fortunate to have seen some of these statues in person at the Louvre last year. It was May of 2025, and I lost my love and partner in life in July of that year. I had never been to Paris before, and my wife had been several times. She, at that time, had been in a memory care facility for almost two years. I carried her photo with me to Paris so, in my mind, she was there with me. I wish I had known the history you relate in your post about the statuary. You have made that visit even more meaningful for me. Thank you.
Wow, this is beautiful on so many levels. I visited the Rodin exhibit at the National Gallery of Art in DC last week, and the sense of awe at the sculptures was the same. So beautifully capturing something human--passion, aspiration, beauty, strength, agony. So there's that. The reference to the many potent mythologies we have inherited, particularly Troy, which have their own humanistic beauty in the way they memorialize our humanity on an epic scale. And then the artists--Michelangelo, Keats, Pliny, Rilke, Byron--and words from them that have their own immortality. And finally, the stories of endurance and survival--of the works themselves, of those who tried to hide them, save them, reconstruct them, resurrect them, even though the original makers are gone and unknown and of the stories they represent. Wow. Beauty upon beauty. And I thought the Nat'l Gallery had filled me up!
As I watch pros today—whether they be chefs or artists or carpenters—I say, “It’s all about the tools.” What on earth did they have to work with? Wilton, KitchenAid, X-Acto knives, pre-mixed paint or pre-stretched canvases, Craftsman tools? No way. Amazing and inspirational.
I am a huge fan of Keats and that verse is one of my favorites. I should’ve recognized that your publication comes from it! Perfectly fits the work you do. I know seeing these sculptures in person would be a wonder! I specially now that you’ve shared their stories. I grieve for those we’ll never see, but gratefully cherish those we can because others preserved them for us.
Locally (Chicago) I love to visit “The Fountain of Time” sculpture by Laredo Taft. It offers much of the same midbrain connection to humanity and history.
Deeply smiling. Thank you.
What a beautiful piece. Thank you.
Poets (not pets - though my hounds can wax poetically when it is near dinner time) 😉