In this gallery, I have chosen sculptures particularly of the female body. These sculptures can be connected to the different eras within the Western world. Each sculpture correlates with a different time period. This gallery touches upon the Ancient Greek, Roman, Romanticism, Realism, Renaissance, Feminism, and Surrealism movements.
Pottery female figurine, -1500/-900, From the collection of: British Museum
This small, female figurine sculpture was found in Mesoamerica along with many other small figurines. These sculptures existed between 1000 BCE and 500 CE and have dated back to the Formative Period. I chose this sculpture because it's among one of the earliest works of the female form and it emphasizes the full hips of the female figure (which could have been symbolic for fertility). This piece ties into the Ancient Greek time period in which the Byzantine empire arises.
Venus with the Apple, Bertel Thorvaldsen, 1813/1816, From the collection of: Thorvaldsens Museum
This sculpture is of the Greek goddess Venus, a mythological symbol of love and beauty, leaning in a slight contrapposto stance whilst holding an apple. There are countless works of art featuring Venus throughout history and they show how representative she was of female sexuality and beauty during the Roman culture.
This sculpture titled "Desolation" represents a woman cowered into a rock. Her head isn't shown and she seems to be in a fetal position. Llimona's sculpture depicts a lot of emotion and can tie to the Romanticism time period, where art is filled with emotion and where beauty is truth (even though it may not always be pleasant).
Stool, Artist Unknown, African, Luba People Democratic Republic of the Congo, 1875/1900, From the collection of: University of Michigan Museum of Art
This sculpture, from the late 1800's, shows an African American woman holding a bowl above her head. I included this sculpture in my gallery because it ties in with Realism. This is a piece of a real, normal person performing an everyday task of carrying water and/or food in a bowl above her head.
Woman (Elevation), Gaston Lachaise (American, born France, 1882-1935), Modeled 1912–15, cast 1927, From the collection of: The Art Institute of Chicago
This is a bronze sculpture of a nude female who is confident with who she is (unlike the woman in the previous sculpture "Desolated"). I chose to include this piece to the gallery because I think it represents a woman from the Renaissance. Renaissance women tend to have round stomaches and plump, full-hipped body types. Here's a video link to the different body types of women within the past movements. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfITRYcnP84
Form-1, Shin, Chihyun, 2006, From the collection of: Korean Art Museum Association
This is a sculpture of a woman confidently standing with her left hand on her hip and right hand on her head. I chose this piece because it portrays the strength and independence of the female, correlating to the Feminism movement (which promotes women's rights on the same political, social, and economic grounds of equality as men).
Fairy, Lee, Il Ho, 2000, From the collection of: Korean Art Museum Association
This is a sculpture of an abstract nude female form and I chose this sculpture because it focuses strongly on the mother's womb. Her womb can be a symbol of love and eroticism and the artist evokes the art by incorporating a sense of touch. This sculpture ties into the time period of Surrealism and the subconscious world.
Credits: All media
This user gallery has been created by an independent third party and may not represent the views of the institutions whose collections include the featured works or of Google Arts & Culture.
