Admit it, when we find things that are really clever or really good, we like to tell the world about it as if it is ours. For example, for Lit class we had to write a 'riddle poem'. I found a very clever one that went like this, "I drink the blood of the earth/and the trees fear my roar/yet a man may hold me in his hands." Figure it out yet? Didn't think so. It is a chainsaw! Clever, right? I know. This natural tendency that we have to take from our predecessors and incorporate or flat out copy it for our own uses is prevalent in art.
The Romanesque period is a prime example of that natural tendency. A majority of the works from this period draw heavily from the Roman period, hence the name Romanesque. A specific piece to look at is the head reliquary of Saint Alexander from Stavelot Abbey in Belgium. This piece, made in 1145 CE, is almost a copy of the face of Augustus in his statue in Primaporta, Italy, which was made around 30 CE. The face on Polykleitos's Doryphoros, made in 450BCE, also matches that of Saint Alexanders.
Though made of two completely different materials, they have the same straight mouth, taught cheeks, prominent brow, and long nose. Their hair even curls the same way; they must have had the same stylist. Saint Augustine is made of silver repoussé, gilt bronze, gems, pearls and enamel, whereas Augustus is a marble copy of a bronze original. Both of these works were designed to show the calm power that the subject holds, or in the case of Saint Alexander, held. Alexander's head rests upon a gold reliquary that carries influence from the byzantine age. A reliquary is a container for holy relics, so in this case it would most likely be ashes or bones of some sort.
The eerie similarity of these two works calls into questions the plagiary rules back then and what morals these copiers had. Also, the lack of protection for intellectual design is appalling. Someone better be collecting copyright checks.
No comments:
Post a Comment