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| The Essence of Ecstasy |
| Fogg Art Museum |
| Eternal Idol by Auguste Rodin |
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Eternal Idol by Auguste Rodin
Fogg Art Museum
Harvard University Art Museums
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA 02138
The sculpture that inspired the first part -- titled "The Essence of Ecstasy" -- was the Eternal Idol by Auguste Rodin. Some people claim that it is his most famous work, but in terms of recognizability, it would be the Thinker that wins hands down, The latter is so iconic, it must have been used (and often parodied also) in various forms of multimedia.
What catapulted Rodin to fame however was his "life like" sculpture of a young and very naked athlete -- with all the correct proportions. [Photos of the model are displayed in the Rodin Museum when I visited.] As a result of the "realism", Rodin was accused of directly casting the model in plaster (think of denture casting for an analogy).
The "Eternal Idol by Auguste Rodin" owned by the Fogg Art Museum is quite a small piece of marble sculpture. I had to crouch down and close up to get a good photo. A much larger (larger than life size?) marble sculpture is found in the Rodin House and Museum in Paris. [I took several images of them, but the film was among the many lost when I returned to the US.]
More than likely, the one owned by the Fogg Art Museum was one of the many copies done by one of the many apprentices to Rodin. Unlike same size bronze copies of the sculpture, there are slight differences in the "finished" marble sculptures.
The image of the "Eternal Idol by Auguste Rodin" shown here may seem the same as the one shown in the first image, but it is not. Apart from the obvious lighter image, there is a subtle change in the perspective that was framed -- but is lost in a two-dimensional limitation of a photograph.
That is the beauty of a sculpture -- the added perspective that contributes to the essence that you get when you interact with the work of art. Change your position and you discover something new.
On the other hand, a two-dimensional image forces you to focus on what is there, in a specific perspective.
Comments
scubapup says:
always a good read to accompany your photos hehe
cgc0202 says:
Thanks for visiting Lenny. I am not sure sometimes if I took a picture because of a thought instilled in my mind beforehand; or, the thought came to mind or coalesced upon viewing the image, such as this.
Until I was writing this, I did not know I would associate this work with the Harvard Boookstore, though. I know I like visiting the bookstore because I could not afford alll the books they have to offer dealing with art, photography, architecture -- what I call visual books. I wish I have more time to visit this bookstore.
People who visit the bookstore from out of town might be surprised and disappointed because it is actually a "small bookstore" in terms of floor space, compared with even the smallest Barnes and Nobles chain store found in many corners of Metro Boston. But, the floorspace -- just a small corner store with a basement (the latter for used and other "overstock" books) -- does not do justice to the breath of what it offers. I guess you have to be there often to appreciate what a treasure it is.
One thing sure, I wish every visitor in Boston would visit this bookstore, a second choice is the Harvard Coop (the one associated with Harvard) because it gives you a sense of what is lost with the onset of online books available on sale through the internet.
It is the sense of discovery of thoughts and visions of others, by accident -- driven by chance encounter possible only through book browsing, rather than wanting to buy or read a book because it got good reviews and becomes popular.
Cornelio
pinoyphotog says:
Cornelio, like Lenny I've also come to expect "annotations" of your uploaded photos.
Keep on Shooting!
Jim
Fil-Am Fotogs
cgc0202 says:
Jim: It is good to know that some people, like you, are reading it. You might like to visit and read the annotations in the other images in this series ; or the Random Thoughts set. -- Cornelio
historygradguy says:
OK this is at Harvard. I thought it was the MFA and I know I hadn't seen that statue there. )
cgc0202 says:
The Fogg Art Museums, and the other museums at Harvard are among th e treasures of Metro Boston that is not as visited by even residents. It is free on Saturdays if you go there before noon.
Pear Biter says:
Wow. Great capture!
--
Seen in my contacts' photos. (?)
cgc0202 says:
Thanks for visiting Eric,
You are quite fast. *grins*
I have not written the commentary I want to use this for -- the obssesion of the church and the extreme religious(sic) right, as well as the state to regulate or interfere with sexual intimacy between consenting individuals. This is specially more ironic in Massachusetts where the Catholic Church has been hypocritical -- having condoned or looked the other way when it came to sexual molestation especially of the young. For decades this was a dark secret, and when it came out, the Catholic Church has done its best and used its power to cover the scandal or malign the reputation of those who tried to seek justice for the harm done.
What I found most repugnant about the situation was that there seem to be no true sense of "Mea Culpa". In fact, in the case of Cardinal Bernard Law(?), he was awarded a highly covetted position in Vatican, a few years after he was forced by the public to resign.
With this as a background, I found it bizzare that a religious institution that coddled child molesters felt that it had the moral authority to invoke and dictate that two consenting adults of the same sex and found love have no right to get married.
Cornelio
rembcc - Lord of the Ping says:
That is a well written comment
cgc0202 says:
I am glad you like it Rem, thanks for passing by.
sadepolesad says:
www.mokrota.com/2007/04/06/top-10-most-grueso mebizarre-sp...
cgc0202 says:
Thanks for visiting, sadepolesad.
pineridge_cowgirl111 says:
isnt this rodin?
cgc0202 says:
Thanks for the fave and the comment.
Yes, it is. According to L'Enfer, the piece itself is called "Eternal Idol". The one found in the Fogg Museum is a smaller "marble" piece. Like many sculptural works, there are also other versions, including bronze.
Visit:
Rodin and his protégés
www.flickr.com/groups/rodinsulpture/pool/
for some images of this and other versions.
Siryn says:
wow, I'm not sure what is more powerful, the photograph of this beautiful statue, or your rather lengthy explanation of your feelings when you looked upon said statue. Either way, I appreciate and share your point of view. Thank you for sharing!
cgc0202 says:
Thanks for visiting and the fave,anaisnin21170, Dexter, nickymcnickerson, Siryn and remy123go. Cornelio