FINAL - Example Essay Book

Method s & I nter preta tions of Bo tticelli’s Prim a vera a nd o ther essa ys

DAD PUBLISHING 2015

Table of Contents Met hods a nd Inte rpre t at ions of Bot t ic elli’s Pr im av er a

Guido Ren i’s po rtrayal of O v id’s At alant a and Hippo m e n e s

P rimar y So urce Pa pe r

............... 1

............... 21

............... 32

A it K hab ba sh Ide ntity s een t hr ough Wedding Cer em o n i e s

............... 38

A nalysis o f Va sa ri’s biogr aphy of M ic helangelo

............... 55

Iconogra ph y/Icon olo gy Res ear c h M et hods f or t he ‘P r i m a v e r a ’ ............... 63

S elf P ortra it as a So lider : A Fr eudian’s Ps y c hoanalys i s a n d Greenberg ’s Fo rmalism Per s pec t iv e

............... 71

T he Inno ce nt Eye Te s t t hr ough t he lens of Plat o’s t h e o r y

............... 81

M ethods & Inter pr etatio ns o f B o tt i c el l i ’ s Pri m a v e ra and o th er es s a y s

•

Ingrid B. Arvelo 2015

• PG. 1

Methods and Interpretations of Botticelli’s Primavera As famous as the Primavera (1477-1480s) is, there has not been a consensus in the scholarship as to its exact meaning, nor Sandro Botticelli’s intentions for painting it, although most will agree that Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de’ Medici commissioned the painting.

Through researching the many scholars’ interpretations, it seems as though most use Panofsky’s methods of iconology and iconography as their foundation as interpreting the meaning. However, as one digs deeper into each source, one can pin point blends of methodologies, such as Ficino’s ideas of love and beauty, Alberti’s ideas of a good painting, as well as formalism, feminism, and psychoanalysis.

Nonetheless, though many scholars take similar approaches, many have chosen different primary sources and understood historical and cultural context in different ways, which have led them to different interpretations.

Botticelli’s Primavera displays nine figures in a garden-like landscape with trees bearing fruit and flowers blossoming. The figures are believed to originate from classical texts. These include Mercury to the left, the three graces, and Zephyr and Chloris or Flora to the right, and Cupid over the central figure. The central figure’s identity is ambiguous; many believe she is Venus, while others are uncertain of

PG. 2

whom she represents. Nonetheless, all the other figures behave and dress according to their recognizable iconography. I will mention several scholars who attempt to research the central figures identity and the meaning of the overall painting.

Michalski uses Panofsky’s approach by using historical information about the patron, Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de’ Medici, and his bride Semiramide Appiani, information about a Babylonian Queen named Semiramis, and by referencing other scholars and primary sources. Michalski bases his research first on the fact that the Primavera was commissioned for the July 1482 wedding of the married couple, Lorenzo and Semiramide. He also begins by stating that the painting was likely meant specifically for the bride because it was placed in her bedroom. He then states his argument, which is that Venus, the central figure is associated with the bride, Semiramide, and Mercury is associated with Lorenzo. Michalski brings up the fact that no one has realized that the “semantic and iconographic implications of the bride’s very rare surname…referring to a legendary Babylonian queen known for her beauty and prowess and…having created the famous hanging gardens”.1 He then goes on to explain the legend of Semiramis to see the comparable characteristics, such as her beauty, which is closely tied to Venus and Semiramide. He explains that

1 Sergiusz Michalski. “Venus as Semiramis: A New Interpretation of the Central Figure of Botticelli’s “Primavera”.” Artibus et Historiae 24, no. 48 (2003): 214.

PG. 3

Semiramis means ‘dove’ in Assyrian, which symbolically meant fertility, one of Venus’ traits, which is something the Medici family would have known.

Michalski mentioned feminism as he stated that during the 15th century, Queen Semiramis was known as a major example of “feminine courage and prowess, two traits the wife…should certainly be expected to display”.2 He explains a legendary story of Semiramis, where he found his research through a French female writer in 1405, Christine de Pizan, where Semiramis was having her hair braided by her servant during a rebellion, and stated that she would not finish her second braid until the rebellion ended. She was then known for having half a braid, as a heroic symbol. However, he attempts to connect this story to Primavera by saying that the central figure’s hair seems similar to Semiramis because of its asymmetry, which seems to be a stretch to connecting it back to Semiramide and Venus. This should not be considered an addition to evidence of connecting Semiramis with Semiramide and Venus because the hair in the painting does not look close enough to Michalski’s description to safely state this idea.

Nevertheless, Michalski considers the history of Lorenzo and his wife Semiramide with the history and legends of Queen Semiramis most

2

PG. 4

Ibid, 217.

valuable in interpreting the painting. He also uses formalism and iconology by comparing another painting that contains Venus and Mercury together, that was meant to celebrate another couples’ wedding in 1497. He also explains that both figures wear red in the Primavera, which links them together, therefore linking the couple and celebrating their wedding.3 Lew Andrews also used Panofsky’s methods; however, he decided to primarily focus on one historical text, Ovid’s Fasti. He includes other scholars who have taken up the same challenge, and decided to go a step further from them in his argument. He states that Ovid’s Fasti influenced Botticelli when painting all the characters rather than just the characters on the right side of the painting. He bases his argument on the fact that each character is at least mentioned in the Fasti. Andrews also added cultural and historical information in order to logically connect Ovid’s description of Floralia and rites of spring to the May Day celebrations in Florence.4 He uses formalism by mentioning each character’s position in the painting to explain the symbolism behind it. He also uses formalism by recognizing how each character balances out the composition; however, he goes further by

3

Ibid, 220.

Lew Andrews. “Botticelli’s ‘Primavera’, Angelo Poliziano, and Ovid’s ‘Fasti’.”Artibus et Historiae 23, no. 63 (2011): 76.

4

PG. 5

uses iconography to explain the link between the three Graces and Venus, but sometimes also Flora. 5 Lastly, Andrews used Poliziano’s manuscripts to argue that he influenced Botticelli more than just through his poetry. He did this by explaining that Poliziano studied Ovid’s Fasti around 1480, and Andrews included information that strengthens his original argument that each character is mentioned and is positioned in such a way that connects the Primavera to Ovid’s Fasti.6 Andrews’ methodologies worked well for interpreting the painting in a persuasive way, however, he could have mentioned more cultural and historical information on the patron, Lorenzo, and researched any possibilities of Lorenzo’s usual interests in commissions to see if there is more to the painting than just Botticelli’s creativity.

On the other hand, Holberton used a blend of methods. He begins by stating that no one has thought to look over Alberti’s Della Pittura when comparing it to the three graces in the Primavera. Alberti states, “It would be a pleasure to see those three sisters whom Hesiod called Egle, Euphrosyne and Thalia, as they are painted taking each other by the hand and laughing, each in a loose, neat dress; they signified liberality because of these sisters gives, the next receives, and

5 6

PG. 6

Ibid, 77.

Ibid, 78.

the third returns the favor, steps required for any complete liberality.”7 Holberton explains that this text was used to paint the three graces in the Primavera, which correlated with Alberti’s idea of an istoria.8 Holberton also looked at the inventory descriptions of each painting in Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de’ Medici’s room in the Via Larga, and he noticed that all the paintings except the Primavera has a detailed description that explained the subject and the characters, such as Pallas and the Centaur. However, the description of the Primavera “was described merely as a picture with figures, both male and female, hanging in the chamber.”9 Thus, Holberton came to the conclusion that the central figure is unlikely to be Venus, and he includes iconography to prove that she is not correctly painted to allow the viewer to recognize her as Venus. Overall, Holberton still bases his research on Panofsky’s methods.

After concluding the central figure is not Venus, he goes on to reference texts from Petrarch’s Rime to associate it with spring and love. He states that there “must be thousands of texts [that] confirm the association that springtime is the only pretty ring-time, sweet lovers

7

Leon Battista Alberti. “Alberti on Painting, 1435,” Creighton E. Gilbert, Italian Art 1400-1500, Sources and Documents (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.) 71.

8 Paul Holberton. “Botticelli’s ‘Primavera’: che volea s’intendesse.” Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 45 (1982): 202.

9 Ibid, 203.

PG. 7

love the spring”.10 In Rime, there is a beautiful lady described during the springtime, and the spring flowers are “as a figure of her beauty, virtually then an emanation.”11 Furthermore, he uses Poliziano’s Stanze to connect the ‘ninfa’ described with “abstract qualities such as Onestate, Gentilezza, Leggiadria” to the three graces also described in Alberti’s description and back to the painting Primavera to represent the central lady’s liberality.12 He then states a passage from Poliziano’s Stanze that mentions three figures, Amor, Minerva, and Gloria. He then states: “These three figures, to interpret somewhat crudely, stand for sexual passion, chastity and prowess; sexual passion imprisoned in chastity achieves prowess. Stanza II explains something of the psychology of the sublimation, purification, or refinement—a perpetual state of fervor maintained by the interaction of two opposites, his sexual passion and her chastity”13 Holberton uses psychoanalysis to interpret the emotions of the two lovers in the poem. He connects it back to the Primavera by stating that spring, like in the poem, is a characteristic of the central lady and also symbolizes her lovers’ passion for her, where the male lover is the viewer. Both halves of the painting describe the meaning of

10

Ibid, 204.

Ibid, 204.

12 Ibid, 205.

13 Ibid, 208.

11

PG. 8

sublimation: the right half shows the impulse feeling of having strong passion, suggesting the lover’s temptation to rape, while the left side shows Mercury looking up as he travels from earth to heaven, where Holberton explained that Mercury is associated with eloquence, grace, and prudence.14 He explains that in contemporary terms, sublimation, in the painting is shown as obtaining gentilezza.15 Holberton uses Panofsky’s methods through iconography, iconology, historical information, classical texts, and Freud’s psychoanalysis in order to find the deeper message within the painting rather than just simply pointing out who each figure represents. These blended methods bring life to the characters in the painting in a way where the viewer is invited to be a part of the meaning.

Two other scholars also use Panofsky’s method; however, they too have different interpretations and also use different sources.

For instance, Marmor argued that Botticelli was mainly influenced by Dante’s Divina Comedia, and specifically Purgatory. He mainly used biographical methods to start his research. He referenced Vasari many times to learn more about Botticelli and his interests, which is how he came to the conclusion that Botticelli was obsessed with Dante.

Marmor then provides evidence of other scholars who agree with his argument, and he also provides historical information, such as

14 15

Ibid, 208 Ibid, 208.

PG. 9

Botticelli’s illustrations of Dante’s writings, and specifically Landino’s commentary on the story of Divina Comedia.16 In order to prove his argument, Marmor references texts from Purgatory, especially the sections that mention the Earthly Paradise, and explains how it is related to the painting, Primavera. Marmor blends biographical and iconological methods in order to make sense of the painting.

Similarly, Rubenstein uses historical texts and information to interpret the Primavera. He argues that the figure on Venus’s left is Iuventas, the Roman goddess of youth and spring, from Horace’s Odes, the main source he uses throughout his essay. He explains that his argument thus disproves that the figure is Chloris transformed into Flora; the classic mythology has been misinterpreted, and actually “Chloris is not changed by metamorphosis into Flora, but is identified with her.”17 His premise, if true, can greatly change further interpretations of the painting. Rubenstein then uses historical information to convince the reader that the painting was commissioned to celebrate Lorenzo’s transition into adulthood. Lorenzo came of age in 1481, near the time the Primavera was commissioned, and was also placed near his bedroom. He also references a letter from Poliziano to Lorenzo that may suggest this: “For, as you will remember, when I was

16

Max C Marmor. “From Purgatory to the “Primavera”: Some Observations on Botticelli and Dante.” Artibus et Historiae 24, no. 48 (2003): 201.

Nicolai Rubenstein. “Youth and Spring in Botticelli’s Primavera.” Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 60 (1997): 250.

17

PG. 10

a youth, I was fond of you as a boy; now, having become a man, I love you as a youth.”18 He demonstrates that Poliziano likely influenced Botticelli to use Horace’s ode to paint the Primavera to celebrate Lorenzo coming of age.19 Possibly understanding Botticelli and Lorenzo’s interests at the time may help to accurately interpret the painting. Nonetheless, Rubenstein chose to negate the information that the painting was also commissioned near the time of the wedding of Lorenzo and Semiramide Appiani even though many other scholars use this source of information to aid in interpreting the painting.

Though many scholars mention Ficino’s letters in their interpretations to the Primavera, one scholar bases his understanding of the painting on Ficino’s beliefs of God, love, and beauty. Ferruolo compares three of Botticelli’s paintings, Birth of Venus, Primavera, and Venus and Mars, to Poliziano’s Stanze and how the poem reflects themes of Ficino’s beliefs. He first explains the cycle of love and beauty. He explains “as it begins in God, it is beauty; as it passes into the world, it is love; as it returns to its source, it is felicity. Love begins in beauty and ends in voluptas.”20 He states that this idea is exemplified in Poliziano’s Stanze with Venus, and connects Birth of Venus to the first stage of beauty, and Primavera expresses love as it passes into the

18

Ibid, 251.

Ibid, 251.

20 Arnolfo B. Ferruolo. “Botticelli’s Mythologies, Ficino’s De Amore, Poliziano’s Stanze Per la Giostra: Their Cycle of Love.” The Art Bulletin 37, no. 1 (1955): 17.

19

PG. 11

world, and Venus and Mars expresses the description of “the realm of Venus” in the Stanze, which reflects felicity and fulfillment of the beauty and love received from the source.

Ferruolo uses formal analysis to explain how each figure in the Primavera contributes to expressing love after Venus from the Birth of Venus expresses beauty. He states, “Through the figures painted on her right, she points to love as desire of contemplating beauty, and through those placed at her left, she points to love as desire of generating beauty.”21 Ferruolo assumes that classical writings from Poliziano and Ficino, since they were popular during Botticelli’s time, are the best sources to interpret the painting. He does not include biographical information about Botticelli, nor does he mention Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de’ Medici. Ferruolo’s methods resulted in a philosophical approach to understanding the painting, and connecting it back to Ficino’s ideas of God, beauty, and love.

Like Holberton, Dempsey also agrees that the three graces came from Alberti’s description of them, and that their positioning signifies liberality. He argues that Horace’s ode and Seneca contributed to the left side of the painting, while Ovid’s Fasti influenced the right side.22 His essay focuses on the three graces and its philosophical

Ibid, 23.

Charles Dempsey. “Botticelli’s Three Graces.” Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 34 (1971): 329.

21 22

PG. 12

interpretation. He uses historical information and references classical texts to do so. He explained that people set up shrines for the three graces is public areas “to remind men to return to kindness; for that is a special characteristic of grace, since it is a duty no only to repay a service done one, but afterwards to take the initiative in doing a service oneself in return.”23 Thus, he connects this idea back to the graces that express the cycle of liberality in the painting to possibly be a gesture of philosophical thought of how one should behave.

Another scholar goes a step further than Dempsey and states that the Primavera was meant to teach the bride, Semiramide Appiani, how to behave. Zirpolo takes a feminist approach to interpret the painting, a way that has not been more popularly considered. She explains how women were expected to behave in the 15th century and connects the cultural aspect with the marriage of Lorenzo and Semiramide. She quoted a statement that Francesco Barbaro wrote in 1415 in his treatise, “On Wifely Duties”, “Moderation in a Wife is believed to consist especially in controlling her demeanor behavior, speech, dress, eating and lovemaking.”24 This statement expresses the pressure women felt during the same time the painting was commissioned. She then uses iconography to connect the meaning with

23

Ibid, 329.

Lilian Zirpolo. “Botticelli’s “Primavera”: A Lesson for the Bride.” Woman’s Art Journal 12, no. 2 (1992): 25.

24

PG. 13

Florentine culture. For instance, the three graces symbolized chaste behavior; Seneca described them as virgins who are pure. The pearl jewelry on one of the graces symbolizes purity. She recognizes that cupid is pointing his arrow at one of the graces, which symbolizes that she is about to give her marriage just like Semiramide did with Lorenzo after their marriage.25 Zirpolo later questions whether Semiramide would have understood the message of the Primavera; she argues that she would because women were educated in the arts, such as literature, poetry, philosophy, and the classics. She would have recognized that iconography and understood the cultural comparison.26 Gillies takes on a feminist and iconological approach as well; however, her argument is based on the central figure. She argues that the figure is not Venus, but actually an Egyptian moon goddess, Isis.27 She researched archetypal female images and eventually came across a roman cult statue of Isis. She researched historical texts on the Primavera, and she found Apuleius Madaurensis’s The Golden Ass, where he described Isis.28 Her essay references parts of The Golden Ass where it mentions the Judgment of Paris because Gombrich cited this section in his essay on the Primavera; she explains the difficulty of

25

Ibid, 25.

Ibid, 25.

27 Jean Gillies. “The Central Figure in Botticelli’s “Primavera”.” Woman’s Art Journal 2, no. 1 (1981): 12.

28 Ibid, 12.

26

PG. 14

connecting the Judgment of Paris to the Primavera because the judgment includes many more characters that would not logically be eliminated for the purpose of the painting and, thus the source is likely not used correctly.29 She goes on to explain the part of the story where Isis is mentioned. Her description is similar to the painting of the central figure; however, there are a few things omitted in the painting that are in the text. For instance, the figure in the painting does not carry a bronze rattle “or hold a boat-shaped disc dish with a serpent in her left hand.”30 Nonetheless, the figure wears a golden veil with a round disc that matches the description in Apuleius’ writing. The colors of her clothes also match the description; the tassels on the borders of the red drapery with blue on the under side also matches the description. Gillies compares the classical text and cult statues of Isis to the painting to see if her argument is plausible. This evidence seems striking since many scholars admit that Venus does not match her usual iconography. She also mentions letters from Ficino to Lorenzo, where Ficino mentions astrology, the heavens, and Greek gods. She then uses autobiographical methods about Ficino and finds a possibility that he was interested in hermeticism. Thus, she safely assumes that he and other humanists at the time were aware of who Isis was, and believes it

29 30

Ibid, 13 Ibid, 14.

PG. 15

would make sense for him to speak about astrological allusions after knowing this information about him.31 Gillies’ approach is unique with a different interpretation, yet not completely far fetched.

From all these scholars, the foundational approach was iconology and iconography, which makes complete sense because the Primavera was painted during a time where Neoplatonism was flourishing. Nonetheless, the autobiographical and feminist points of view still lend themselves to valuable information and possibly Botticelli’s true intentions of the painting. When interpreting this painting, the fact that there was a patron is important to consider; it is interesting that some scholars agree that the painting might have something to do with the wedding of Lorenzo and Semiramide, and others completely ignore this information. Those who did not use this information could have mentioned it and explained their reasoning not to include it. Further, the Primavera works best with a blend of methodologies to lead to the most accurate interpretation.

When researching the Primavera, there are many questions and approaches that should be considered, most of which would benefit from extending the reach of Panofsky’s iconology. The issue of whom the central figure represents is a popular one, yet many scholars did not mention that it was an issue and just assumed that it was Venus. Since

31

PG. 16

Ibid, 16.

it is agreed upon that Venus’ iconography does not match the central figure, then that should be one of the first questions to consider.

Another would be why the painting was commissioned for the Medici family. A blend of biographical information of both Botticelli and Lorenzo, iconological and iconographical, and feminist approaches seem most effective for the Primavera. It blends the history and popular culture during the Quattrocento and allows the consideration that the painting may have well been a model for behavior for the bride, or possibly both the bride and groom.

Though each scholar has concluded different meanings of the painting, most have used Panofsky’s methods as a foundation, to then lead them to other interesting approaches, which include Ficino’s ideas of love and beauty, Alberti’s ideas of a good painting, as well as formalism, feminism, and psychoanalysis. Botticelli’s painting represents popular characters that for the most part are easy to verify, yet many people disagree on the source of each character. Some only consider Ovid’s Fasti, while others consider Alberti’s Della Pictura, Ficino’s essays on love and beauty, or other classics. Others consider cultural and historical context more valuable which also lead to different interpretations as well. The uncertainty of the central figure has been a popular question. It is interesting to consider that even Vasari seemed puzzled by the central figure. Not only this, but the

PG. 17

description of the painting in the inventory was extremely vague compared to the rest of the paintings. Nevertheless, the identity of the central figure and the meaning of the Primavera are yet to be agreed upon and are left a mystery.

Sandro Botticelli, Primavera, 1482

PG. 18

References Alberti, Leon Battista. “Alberti on Painting, 1435,” Creighton E. Gilbert, Italian Art 1400-1500, Sources and Documents (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.), pp. 51-75 Andrews, Lew. “Botticelli’s ’Primavera’, Angelo Poliziano, and Ovid’s ‘Fasti.’” Artibus et Historiae 23, no. 63 (2011): 73-84.

Dempsey, Charles. “Botticelli’s Three Graces.” Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 34 (1971): 326-330.

Ferruolo, Arnolfo B. “Botticelli’s Mythologies, Ficino’s De Amore, Poliziano’s Stanze Per la Giostra: Their Cycle of Love.” The Art Bulletin 37, no.1 (1955): 17-25.

Gillies, Jean. “The Central Figure in Botticelli’s “Primavera”.”

Woman’s Art Journal 2, no. 1 (1981): 12-16.

Holberton, Paul. “Botticelli’s ‘Primavera’:che volea s’intendesse.”

Journal of the Warburg and courtauld Institutes 45 (1982): 202-210 Marmor, Max C. “From Purgatory to the “Primavera”: Some Observations on Botticelli and Dante.” Artibus et Historiae 24, no. 48 (2003): 199-212.

Michalski, Sergiusz. “Venus as Semiramis: A New Interpretation of the Central Figure of Botticelli’s “Primavera”.” Artibus et Historiae 24, no.

48 (2003): 213-222.

Rubenstein, Nicolai. “Youth and Spring in Botticelli’s Primavera.”

Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 60 (1997): 248-251.

Zirpolo, Lilian. “Botticelli’s “Primavera”: A Lesson for the Bride.”

Woman’s Art Journal 12, no. 2 (1992): 24-28

PG. 19

PG. 20

Guido Reni’ s port rayal o f Ovid’ s At alant a and Hip p o me n e s

•

Ingrid B. Arvelo 2013

• PG. 21

Guido Reni’s portrayal of Ovid’s Atalanta and Hippomenes

Guido Reni’s Atalanta and Hippomenes (1612) found in

figure 1, illustrates the moment in Ovid’s story that allows viewers to

easily identify the figures. Ovid describes his characters as having strong sexual desires for each other, especially with the male protagonist. Reni paints the scene during the middle of the race while Atalanta grabs the golden apple. Reni clearly executes the general story correctly, however, he adds his own style to create an idealized version.

A realistic version of the painting would have included dramatic facial expressions that show the characters accordingly with the figures positioned in a running pose. The viewer would have been able to see the desire of the characters for each other in the painting. Nonetheless, Guido Reni interprets the story in a different way. He positions Atalanta and Hippomenes in poses that create a theatrical feel of the painting, almost as if the characters were posing for him. Additionally, he avoids sexual desires in their facial expressions and in Hippomenes’ hand gesture. Instead he focuses more on the mannerist-influenced movement of their drapery, the hand gesture of Atalanta, and the effeminate facial features of Hippomenes in order to create idealized figures that illuminate purity

PG. 22

Ovid writes the story of a young beautiful maiden who was a runner that nobody could beat in a race. A god once told her that she could not marry, therefore, she told all her contestants “You cannot have me; unless you outrun me, come race against me! A bride and a bed for the winner, death to the losers. Those are the rules of the contest” (line 677). A young man named Hippomenes fell madly for Atalanta; he then had help from Aphrodite who just came back from a field in Tamasus where she happened to grab a few golden apples.

Aphrodite gave them to Hippomenes so that he could use them to distract Atalanta during the competition. When the race started, he threw the golden apples at different times during the race so that he could catch up. The “glittering missiles” caught Atalanta’s attention as she grabbed each one, consequently allowing Hippomenes to win (line 781).

After the race, Hippomenes and Atalanta went for a walk and decided to take a rest by the Temple of Cybele. Meanwhile, Aphrodite was enraged because Hippomenes did not thank her for all she had done for him. Therefore, she manipulated the situation so that “unbridled desire possessed Hippomenes” (line 804). They then defiled a sacred place with unholy acts, which angered Cybele. Consequently, Cybele turned them into lions so that they could live in the forest and act like the animals they are.

PG. 23

Like most artists, Guido Reni painted the scene where Atalanta bends down to pick up a golden apple, while Hippomenes rushes to pass her so that he may win. Though Ovid describes his characters in a specific way, Guido Reni uses his talents of delicacy and graceful figures to portray his idealized captured moment of the ancient myth. Atalanta leans over her right thigh, with her left leg elongated behind her as she stretches her right arm to pick up the second golden apple. She holds the first golden apple in her left hand, which rests on her waist. Her fair skin illuminates with the fierce flash of light against the dark background. Reni painted the figures nude, while only covering their genitals with drapery. According to Ovid’s myth, Atalanta wears “brightly edged knee straps” (line 702). However, Reni omitted the straps in order to maintain the cleanness aspect of the work of art.

Additionally, Atalanta’s left hand uncomfortably bends inward while she rests the golden apple in her palm with her fingers hardly supporting its hold. This unnatural manner of holding the apple and how gently her toes and Hippomenes’ skim the ground gives the painting a weightless feel possibly influenced my mannerism in Raphael’s paintings (Spear, Grove Art Online). Reni further idealizes Atalanta through the movement of her hair, which has yet to catch up to the swiftness of her feet. Moreover, the drapery delicately wraps itself

PG. 24

around Atalanta’s left leg and goes around her right shoulder. Reni painted her drapery a sheer white to further emphasize her purity and beauty illustrated in the story. Atalanta’s femininity is illuminated through her fine drapery and delicate pose, while Hippomenes does not completely exemplify masculinity.

Guido Reni’s Hippomenes exposes the front side of his body by putting all his weight on his left leg. His musculature and youthful face follows Ovid’s story, which describes Hippomenes as a young man. His right leg stretches outward, elongating his body. His feet look as though they lack gravity, as do Atalanta’s, softly touching the ground. This parallels the story, where Ovid writes that as soon as the race starts, they take off with “their feet barely brushing the surface” (line 765). Hippomenes points his right arm towards Atalanta with his palm facing up and looks at her with hardly any expression. Ovid portrays Hippomenes as a young man whose strong sexual desires for Atalanta hinders his actions and behavior in the end. Reni’s painting of Hippomenes makes one question whether his attraction to Atalanta is illustrated in the work of art.

Reni’s Hippomenes lacks any sensual desire for Atalanta. One may argue that he pushes her away in order to pass her in the race, however, his dull eyes express something different. Richard Spear wrote that, “Hippomenes’ peculiar gesture toward Atalanta…as if the

PG. 25

young contender were rejecting rather than courting the beautiful virgin, recalls more a noli me tangere than a contest of pagan love” (Spear 64). His hand gesture can be compared to Artemisia Gentileschi’s Susanna and the Elders (1610) found in figure 2, where Susanna rejects the rape threat from the two community leaders. Her left hand projects out and her right hand faces the men, pushing them away. This gesture clearly signifies refusal. However, Guido Reni’s interpretation of beauty may also be the reason for a dull facial expression. In facial expressions, muscles lift the skin in certain areas causing wrinkles. Reni’s style of angelic countenance avoids any kind of folding of the skin. Though Reni’s Hippomenes does not fully demonstrate the male protagonist in Ovid’s myth, it illustrates Hippomenes in a graceful manner, with whimsical movements.

Hippomenes’ drapery does not wrap itself around his body, but lifts up between his legs, lightly hiding his genital area in a perfect manner, which draws one’s eye to this area, almost like a tease. In addition, Reni chose to paint his drapery in rose pink and gave Hippomenes a young, effeminate face. With that said, however, in the story, Atalanta asks herself what attracts her to Hippomenes and she says “Nor am I moved by his beauty…though I could be, but I am moved by his youth: his boyishness stirs me” (line 723). Additionally, she speaks to Hippomenes saying that she wishes he would give up or

PG. 26

at least wishes he was faster than her so that he would not die. Since he does not give up, she says, “How very girlish is the boy’s facial expression” (line 742). The boyishness described by Ovid refers to the youthfulness and adventurous behavior he has, while girlish refers to Hippomenes’ foolishness or naivety. Reni could have translated these descriptions that allude to being young and careless onto Hippomenes’ face by how he left out any signs of facial hair and gave him the smooth appearance that children still have. Nonetheless, Richard Spear explains that Reni deliberately avoided aggressive behavior in his male figures, even when aggressiveness was necessary to illustrate a story.

He uses the example of Reni’s Samson slaying the Philistines (1608) found in figure 3, to show how gently Samson holds the enemy’s head and how his face expression illustrates a tender soul. Spear explains that “Reni seems to have been a shy adolescent whose broader pattern of behavior indicates gender nonconformity, whether by acting feminine or only unmasculine,” therefore, inferring that “Reni’s psycho-sexual makeup and personality affected how he pictured and eroticized some of his male and female figures” (60-61). His personality explains why he avoids painting violence or rugged, masculine men. Therefore, Hippomenes’ effeminate characteristics come from Reni’s perspective and interests instead of Ovid’s interpretation.

PG. 27

Guido Reni deviates from the message of the story by idealizing the figures through their dramatic poses, emotionless facial expressions, and movement of their drapery. Reni idealized his paintings with the essence of purity in his figures. Many of his role models lived in the generation before him, during the Renaissance and maniera movement. This is revealed through his painting, although it is completely recognizable against other maniera paintings. Reni tried to find perfection in his paintings that naturally cannot be found in life.

Pepper wrote that Reni “creates an artificial environment because the natural world cannot encompass his vision� (30). This fully demonstrates the gracefulness and beauty that Reni executes in his paintings, especially found in Atalanta and Hippomenes.

PG. 28

Figure 1. Guido Reni, Atalanta and Hippomenes, 1612.

Â

Figure 2. Artemisia Gentileschi, Susanna and the Elders, 1610.

PG. 29

Figure 3. Guido Reni, Samson slaying the Philistines, 1608.

References Ovid. Metamorphoses. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2004.

Print.

Pepper, D. Stephen. “Guido Reni’s Practice of Repeating Compositions.” Artibus et Historiae (1999): 27-54. Web. Spear, Richard. The Divine Guido. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1997. Print.

Spear, Richard. "Reni, Guido.” Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online.

Oxford University Press (2013): Web.

PG. 30

PG. 31

P rimary Source Pap e r

• PG. 32

Ingrid B. Arvelo 2014

•

Primary Source Paper A British writer and natural scientist, Thomas Edward Bowdich, travelled to West Africa several times in his life to learn about its environment and natives. He was assigned a mission by the Africa Company in 1817 to visit the King of the Asante group in Cape Coast, Ghana. The goal was to make a good relationship with the king in order to establish trade with his civilization.32 In order to establish trade, the British also wanted Bowdich and his partners to receive permission from the king to “send an embassy to his capital”.33 During his trip to Coomassie in Ghana, Bowdich kept a journal with full descriptions of his findings about the Asante natives and the king. He wrote about their customs, clothing, ceremonies, and many other aspects of the Asante and their home. His journal is titled Mission from Cape Coast to Ashantee; with a Descriptive account of that Kingdom and it was republished in 1873. In a specific passage, Bowdich described what the caboceers and his attendants were wearing. He used illustrative language in order for the reader to imagine what he sees.

His choice of words in his detailed examination show that he was deeply interested in what the high status natives wore through their

Thomas Edward Bowdich, Mission from Cape Coast Castle to Ashantee (London: Griffit and Farren, 1873), pages vi.

33 Ibid., 3.

32

PG. 33

high quality cloths, handmade jewelry, and gold casted accessories.

Bowdich likely did not expect to find high quality goods from an African ethnic group; however, the things he saw gave him more desire to establish trade with the Asante group.

According to Bowdich, the officials wore expensive cloths that were imported and rewoven locally for them. Bowdich chose to describe the Asante cloths to have an “extravagant price” since they had imported foreign silks.34 He explained that they unravel the silk so that they can weave the thread into their desired textile, which included pattern and “varieties of color”.35 He did not mention if the cloth had a specific name or if it contained symbolism for the Asante natives wearing it. However, he explained in the first sentence that those with authority wore these high quality cloths. Bowdich explained that the cloth was large and heavy; he chose to include this in his journal because it is not the norm in England to wear clothing that is bulky, heavy, and loose. This gives the reader a better understanding of how different these natives dressed compared to themselves. To add on, he explained that the officials wore the cloth “over the shoulder exactly like the Roman toga”.36 This description is bias toward the European point of view; the Roman toga is a popular historical fact there,

Ibid., 38.

Ibid., 38.

36 Ibid., 38.

34 35

PG. 34

however, those native to Africa may have worn their cloth this way for centuries as well. Nonetheless, it draws in the European reader to his writings. Bowdich used his common language in order to appeal to the European readers, and as well used descriptive language to illuminate the high value of their cloths.

Bowdich then emphasized on how ornately and delicately the jewelry was made. He explained that the natives wore a small silk band around their temples with “massy gold necklaces,” which were “intricately wrought”.37 Again, he pointed out that the band was made out of silk, which is highly valued, and described their gold necklaces as massy. A small piece of gold is greatly valued, so since the officials wore a chunk of gold as jewelry, it is safe to assume they were wealthy.

Bowdich also explained that they wore Moorish charms, which were “enclosed in small square cases of gold, silver, and curious embroidery”.38 He chose to point out the gold and silver jewelry, however, it is questionable if the jewelry was completely made out of gold or gilded with a thin layer of gold over a metal. He could tell, that the jewelry took time to make. He also pointed out the embroidery as curious, which shows that this was possibly a new idea for him. He also explained that some wore necklaces out of aggry beads with gold, and

37 38

Ibid., 38.

Ibid., 38.

PG. 35

added, “small circles of gold like guineas, rings, and casts of animals, were strung round their ankles”.39 He compared the gold to guineas, which is another perception towards Europeans because it is something common to European people, which makes it easily imagined when read. The way Bowdich chose to explain the jewelry is through its main materials, gold and silver, which are things that traders with Ghanaians would highly desire.

Bowdich lastly described their accessories, such as sandals, canes, and pipes. The sandals described were red, green, and white leather. This shows the European reader how colorful the Asante natives wore their sandals, compared to their body wrappers, where he left out their specific colors, although he wrote that they were colorful as well. He then wrote that the natives wore “rude lumps of rock gold, hung from their left wrists, which were so heavily laden as to be supported on the head of one of their handsomest boys”.40 This metaphor illustrates the bulkiness of the gold that these Asante natives wore. This again emphasizes their wealth, but also appeals to European traders. Bowdich also wrote, “gold and silver pipes and canes dazzled the eye in every direction”.41 Bowdich showed how their fancy

Ibid., 38.

Ibid., 38.

41 Ibid., 38.

39 40

PG. 36

accessories fascinated him. Clearly, Bowdich saw the value in their accessories that they elaborately made.

Overall, Bowdich wrote a description of how the caboceers and their attendants were dressed at the time. He paid close attention to their valued materials, such as silk, gold, silver, and leather. He also recognized the intricate and laborious work involved in designing their garments and jewelry. Bowdich showed how wealthy these high officials were, but yet very different from the European style. Bowdich was attracted to their elaborate and expensive cloths, jewelry, and accessories, and saw the high potential for their goods to be used for trade with Europeans.

Reference Bowdich, Thomas Edward. Mission from Cape Coast Castle to Ashantee; with a Descriptive Account of that Kingdom. London: Griffit and Larren, 1873.

PG. 37

Ait Kha bbash Ident it y seen th ro u gh W edding Ceremoni e s

• PG. 38

Ingrid B. Arvelo 2014

•

Ait Khabbash Identity seen through Wedding Ceremonies Individuals tend to distinguish themselves from others through their conscious decision to identify themselves in a certain way.

Different countries, and more specifically, different ethnic groups do the same thing. This shows a sense of pride by celebrating where one came from and the meaning behind the traditions that are still held today. An Amazigh group, the Ait Khabbash, in southeastern Morocco is a formerly nomadic people who struggle to survive as time goes on with conditions changing and newcomers coming to their land. Their nomadic past is a part of their identity that they see for themselves.

Other ethnic groups have come in and challenged the access to their land, such as the Arab speakers from other parts of Morocco. These newcomers see it as free land for farming, however the Amazigh people believe the unused land is ancestral and ultimately theirs. Thus, this causes competition, which provokes the need for the Amazigh people to clearly express their identity to keep it from fading out into other groups.42 Becker argues that women in the Ait Khabbash group have the most influence in traditions through their textiles and the rituals involved in the wedding ceremony. Weddings play a huge role for

42

Bernahard Venema and Ali Mguild. “Access to land and Berber Ethnicity in the Middle Atlas, Morocco,” Middle Eastern Studies 39 (2003): 36.

PG. 39

women to emphasize their vital roles in society. This essay will analyze clothing women have woven for the bride, which incorporate embroidery with meaning and symbolism. Additionally, the rituals and traditions that are included in each day of the wedding ceremony represent the importance of fertility. All have enhanced the Amazigh group’s identity, which allows them to distinguish themselves from other North African ethnic groups. As Becker states, “Weddings signify and reinforce social and gender norms, further protecting group identity and maintaining ethnic purity.”43 The values of the Ait Khabbash society are clearly expressed through the three-day wedding ceremonies; these values include fertility, community, and the continuation of their group.

Before the wedding ceremony begins, the Ait Khabbash couple travels to a nearby government office to legally wed; the wedding ceremony is then set on a later date.44 Once the date arrives, the preparation begins. The groom assigns three men, called isnain, to set up the groom’s tent and the bride’s tent, which are far apart from each other. This connects them to their former nomadic past, where women set up their tents each time they settled down for a period of time. Afterwards, the isnain picks up the bride from her home to bring

43

Cynthia Becker, “Performing Amazigh Gender Roles,” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 139.

44 Ibid., 134.

PG. 40

to the bridal tent. Formerly, the isnain picked her up on a horse or mule, but now they rent a van with a driver. The men are dressed in white with turbans to show their purity as trustworthy and responsible men.45 When they arrive, they stay seated on top of the van, as the women and bride sing a song to the men. As they sing, one by one each man comes down and brings a gift to the bride. In the song, the women mention the gifts that the isnain will give to the bride. These gifts include jewelry worn by married women, belts made of silk, and shoes from the city, Fez. The groom is the one who buys his bride these gifts, which shows the community his wealth.46 Afterwards, they take the bride to the tent so that she can be dressed properly.

As this goes on, the women from the groom’s family are responsible for providing the food at the wedding. It takes several women and many hours to grind the wheat and bake the bread.47 Though this takes a lot of effort, the women do not mind because it gives them a break from daily house chores; they delight in working for the wedding ceremony. As they prepare the food, they also sing to pass by the time. These songs, however, are not random. They make references to butter, milk, rams, and grains representing, “fertility of the land and the reproductive potential of the married couple and were

45 Cynthia Becker, “Women as Public Symbols of Identity,” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 97.

46 Ibid., 104-105.

47 Ibid., 100.

PG. 41

also specific references to items associated with women.”48 This shows the importance of women’s roles in their society to continue their lineage as purely Ait Khabbash.

When the bride and the other women arrive at the tent, they circle around the tent counterclockwise to pay respect to spiritual beings around them and hope that there are not any negative spirits there to ruin the ceremony. Afterwards, the bride is given a bowl of milk. She drinks some of it and then sprinkles the rest onto her guests.

This symbolizes luck and fertility, which helps to maintain their identity.49 The symbolism of fertility reminds the Ait Khabbash of the their responsibilities to keep their population growing by having more children. Once they enter the tent, they dress her in a white garment made out of cotton, called ahruy. The bride’s mother makes her a wool belt for her to wear during the ceremony as seen in Figure 2. The belt the bride wears symbolizes fertility and her transition into motherhood.

While the bride is getting adorned in the tent, she sits on a red blanket, which symbolizes virginal blood, menstruation, and childbirth.50 This additionally explains how fertility is a priority in their society. The tamaccat, a woman who has never been divorced and has grown children; a women with these characteristics are chosen because they

48

Ibid., 103.

Cynthia Becker, “Performing Amazigh Gender Roles,” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 138-39.

50 Ibid., 107.

49

PG. 42

represent a women that the new bride should emulate. It encourages the bride to stay married and have healthy children. Once the tamaccat is chosen, she sews a red silk cloth over the bride’s head (called aâbroq), and it is only removed at night and after the last day of the wedding.51 Only the women and her husband are able to see her face. The tamaccat also braids her hair and dresses her with jewelry on her body and on her aâbroq. In Figure 1 and 2, the bride wears the fully sewn aâbroq over her face; this is the way she will be viewed by the wedding guests during the ceremony. The jewelry on the aâbroq shown creates the hornlike shape. Dressing the head is nothing new to African ethnic groups; it is commonly associated with intelligence and culture. The aâbroq was specifically apart of the Ait Khabbash identity; it “diminishes the bride’s individuality transforming her instead into a symbol of her group.”52 The colors red and yellow are associated with virginal blood, which again references fertility and the importance of Ait Khabbash identity through women’s reproductive potentials.53 As her face is covered by the aâbroq, it becomes less about the individual bride, and instead makes her apart of something bigger than herself.

This is completely different to American weddings, where the wedding

51

Ibid., 108.

Ibid., 113-114.

53 Ibid., 117.

52

PG. 43

ceremony is centered on the bride and groom as a couple as they celebrate their love for each other.

As the women are dressing the bride, the young bride feels nervous for her first sexual encounter with the groom. Additionally, she is nervous about the unknown future and what the married life will entail. Thus, the elder women who have already experienced this give her advice and support her through this new endeavor. As they do this, they sing a song in their native language, Tamazight. In the song, they explain that the bride must throw away her older clothes, so she can start fresh as a married woman. Her old clothes incorporated dirty and faded t-shirts and skirts. Before the wedding, mothers teach their young daughters how to be wives by giving them house chores. While they do their chores, they wear the faded clothing, which shows they are young and work hard in the home. If a young girl is seen with nice, clean clothing, people may assume that she is foolish, or even promiscuous.

It is unnecessary for a young girl to have nice clothes until she is married to show that she is stable and represents her value to the community.

During the wedding ceremony, the women and men perform a dance with poetry, called the ahidous. The women wear the ahruy garment and an indigo-dyed shawl (called tahruyt) over their heads as well. The tahruyt is made of wool yarn and it has brightly colored

PG. 44

embroidery that make up motifs. Figure 3 and 4 shows the different motifs that women sew onto their tahruyts. Many different Amazigh groups perform the ahidous, but each incorporated different styles of clothing and colors to distinguish themselves from each other.54 The tahruyt stops at the women’s waist, which accentuates this area to emphasize childbirth and fertility.55 The tahruyt is made up of two pieces that are sewn together at the selvedge. One can see the section where the pieces joined together because the women embroider a thick colorful band over it right in the center that falls diagonally on their backs as seen in Figures 3 and 4.

Married women cover their faces with the tahruyt. The tahruyt usually has always been indigo-dyed, but now some women buy the cloth in the markets made out of cotton and polyester and in the color black.56 Either way, the tahruyt contains designs that contain meaning that can be recognized to other people in their society. Many have zigzag lines with the thick central band, which is usually very colorful similar to Figures 3 and 4. The figures show their symmetry on both sides as well, which is important to the women. Many motifs may relate to pigeons, such as neon green zigzag design, because they are important

54

Cynthia Becker, “Dance Performances,” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 76-77.

55 Ibid., 83.

56 Cynthia Becker, “The Art of Dressing the Body,” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 64.

PG. 45

to the Ait Khabbash people. Pigeons signify purity, beauty, good fortune, and fertility. The women wear the ahruy and tahruyt combined which contrasts the white black of the difference cloths; these are associated with a type of Moroccan bird. Birds in general are symbols of fertility, so they are often referenced in their motifs or music.

Additionally, other motifs such as flowers, wheat, and trees represent plenty, prosperity, and again fertility. Small triangles are used to resemble the markings of animals they make on the ground. When they embroider flowers, they outline them with one color and use their complimentary color to shade in the flower design.57 Though the women in the performance wear this type of clothing, the bride wears a red and yellow, plaid like cloth (called tamxezniyt) over her white garment, and a black sheer cloth (called tawkayt) over the plaid cloth.

This is similar to what Berber women used to wear, which is a way to associate themselves with their ancestors.58 At around ten at night during the first day of the ceremony, the bride is sent to the groom’s tent, where they will consummate their marriage for the first time.59 The second day of the wedding is about celebrating the bride as a young woman who is no longer a virgin. The

57

Ibid., 64.

Cynthia Becker, “Women as Public Symbols of Identity,” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 111-112.

59 Cynthia Becker, “Performing Amazigh Gender Roles,” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006), 140.

58

PG. 46

wedding becomes more about the bride, and less about the groom. That morning she redresses into her ceremonial clothing including the silver jewelry, such as bracelets and necklaces. Now she is a married woman who dresses well and is perfumed, unlike unmarried girls who dress in old clothing. Her well-dressed clothing is a signifier to the public that the groom’s family is wealthy. When she redresses in her white garment, it is now stained with hymeneal blood to show her virginity.

After they consummated, the bride bleeds and the bride and groom wipe it with her garment to show proof the next day to the families and guests. This is important for Ait Khabbash society because if a woman does not bleed, it may show that she was not a virgin. The groom is allowed to divorce her if this occurs. Her virginity is highly valued because it proves that their future children will be from Ait Khabbash bloodline, which is necessary to continue growing their society.60 This does not mean that the father is more important than the mother because women are just as needed as men to procreate.

During the day, the men sing a song to the bride; one of the lines specifically shows the significance of the bride: “a dagger with a strong, beautiful silk cord is like a man supported by a hardworking, beautiful woman.”61 This shows the bonds between the bride and

60 61

Ibid., 142-144.

Ibid., 147.

PG. 47

groom that will keep them strong together as a couple apart of a larger community that must stay united as a society. Later that day, the groom sacrifices a ram for the community to eat during the ceremony. Before this is done, they put a similar cloth as the bride’s clothing over the ram and then the bride and groom step over it to represent their transition into marital life.62 Her virginal blood is also symbolized through the blood of the ram after it is sacrificed.63 After the sacrifice, the groom spends time with the guests and other men. The bride is with the other women as they dress her with adornments and style her hair differently to resemble a pigeon. Women are constantly compared to birds in order to remind them of their power as females in their society.64 On the third day of the wedding, the women lift the aâbroq and paint her face with orange saffron and a black pigment. As she is in the tent, the guests outside sing to the bride to come out so they can finally see her face. Once she is revealed outside, the ceremony ends with one last performance (called umidal), which involves everyone at the wedding. The performance unites the whole community, and the bride is the symbol of that union.65 Becker states, “The song is a verbal

62

Ibid., 148-49 Ibid., 151.

Ibid., 155.

65 Ibid., 157-59 63 64

PG. 48

expression of the resistance against domination by outside groups and is rich in visual metaphors of community.”66 The three day wedding ceremony involves the help of many female friends and family of the bride that help to dress her appropriately in such a way that transforms her into a married women, who works hard to maintain her Ait Khabbash culture. The ceremony involves jewelry, clothing, and specific colors that symbolized her power to procreate, and with this power, she can choose to continue their bloodline or dissolve it. Therefore, women are highly valued; and the traditional songs and rituals, such as soaking the virginal blood and drinking a sip of milk, are ways that the community recognizes their significance. As one examines the traditions involved in the wedding ceremony, one will see that fertility, community, and continuation of their bloodline are important priorities to the Ait Khabbash society.

66

Ibid., 159.

PG. 49

References Becker, Cynthia. “Dance performances” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity, 76-94. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006.

Becker, Cynthia. “The Art of Dressing the Body” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity, 47-75. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006.

Becker, Cynthia. “Performing Amazigh Gender Roles” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity, 134-161. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006.

Becker, Cynthia. “Women as Public Symbols of Identity” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity, 95-133.Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006.

Venema, Bernhard and Ali Mguild. “Access to land and Berber Ethnicity in the Middle Atlas, Morocco,” Middle Eastern Studies, 3553. 2003.

PG. 50

Figure 1. Ait Khabbash bride getting traditionally dressed for the wedding ceremony Morocco Photo taken by Cynthia Becker, 2000 Â

Figure 2. Ait Khabbash bride getting traditionally dressed for the wedding ceremony Morocco Photo taken by Cynthia Becker, 1997

PG. 51

Figure 3. Women dressed with embroidered tahruyt Morocco Photo taken by Cynthia Becker, 2000

PG. 52

Figure 4. Women showing their embroidery on their tahruyts Morocco Photo taken by Cynthia Becker, 2000

Images references Figure 1: Cynthia Becker, “Women as Public Symbols of Identity” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity, 98-99. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006.

Figure 2: Cynthia Becker, “Women as Public Symbols of Identity” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity, 121. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006.

Figure 3 and 4: Cynthia Becker, “Women as Public Symbols of Identity” Amazigh Arts in Morocco: Women shaping Berber Identity, 98-99. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006.

PG. 53

PG. 54

A naly sis o f V a s a ri ’ s b i o g r ap hy o f Mi c h ela n gelo

•

Ingrid B. Arvelo 2015

• PG. 55

Analysis of Vasari’s biography of Michelangelo In Lives of the Artists, Giorgio Vasari applies several of the historical conventions used in artists’ biographies. Art historians have used these biographies to theorize about the concepts of art during the period that the artists lived. Vasari wrote about Michelangelo saying, “…To the end that the world might choose him and admire him as its highest exemplar in the life, works, saintliness of character, and every action of human creatures, and that he might be acclaimed by us as a being rather divine than human”. Vasari continually praised Michelangelo for his supreme character and talent as a sculptor and painter. Throughout his biography, Vasari discussed the many successes in Michelangelo’s life, and how his competitors and constant work opportunities greatly impacted him. In Michelangelo’s account, Vasari described specific historical events in Michelangelo’s life in order to show the individual artist as a key component to their works of art. Not only this, but after one reads the detailed accounts of Michelangelo’s finished projects, it can be inferred that good art, according to Vasari, has correct proportions and represents realistic figures, yet portrays them with design that cannot be seen in nature.

One of the major historical conventions found in Michelangelo’s biography are the constant remarks that portray him as a divine artist. Vasari began the biography by first describing how the

PG. 56

liberal arts were at the time. There were great artists such has Giotto living during this era. Additionally, there were many intellects and men who thought highly of themselves. He then explained that the Ruler of Heaven decided to create a being on earth who would show everyone what true perfection is in the arts; furthermore, the world needed someone who can master the design aspect in art using several different mediums. When Michelangelo was born, his father thought, “He was something celestial and divine beyond the use of mortals.” From when he was born, his father already had a sense that his son would be special, which Vasari used to foreshadow his future. In another example, Michelangelo carved out a sculpture of a sleeping Cupid and a sculpture of S. Giovannino out of marble for Lorenzo di Pier Francesco de’ Medici. When finished, Lorenzo thought it was stunning, and told Michelangelo that if he buried it and sent it to Rome that he could earn more money for it because he would be able to fool people in thinking it was an antique. Vasari added, “It is said that Michelangelo handled it in such a manner as to make it appear an antique; nor is there any reason to marvel at that, seeing that he had genius enough to do it, and even more.” In other words, Vasari was hardly surprised of how Michelangelo could make a sculpture look antique. He labeled him as a genius, and possibly even beyond that as he later went on to say that Michelangelo surpassed the ancients. Vasari

PG. 57

did not believe Michelangelo was an extremely talented artist because he had the craftsmanship, but rather he had the imagination to create works of art that contained variation and design beyond what nature creates on its own. He described him as a genius throughout his biography in order to communicate to the reader of how successful he truly was in his specialties.

As Michelangelo gained fame and wealth, he also gained competitors along the way. Michelangelo was commissioned to build a tomb and a sculpture for Pope Julius II. While he was working on the sculpture, Bramante and Raffaello da Urbino attempted to convince the Pope to hold off on building his tomb since he was not dying anytime soon. Their hope was to persuade him to order Michelangelo to work on a fresco on the vaulting of the chapel believing he was not as skilled with painting frescos. They knew he was the best at sculpture, thus they envied his successes, and tried to make him use his weaknesses so that his artworks would not look as beautiful as his sculptures. Raffaello, on the other hand, had experience in fresco, therefore he hoped to be recognized as a great artist compared to Michelangelo. At first Michelangelo was stressed about Pope’s request for him to paint the vaulting, however, he eventually accepted the offer. That being so, Raffaello was ordered to construct the scaffolding for the fresco, however, Michelangelo saw his mistakes and told the Pope, who then

PG. 58

told Michelangelo to be in charge of the scaffolding. As a result, Michelangelo taught Raffaello and other artists how to erect the scaffolding, and ended up hiring a carpenter to do it for him. This scenario reveals a part of Michelangelo’s personality and the strong envy of his rivals. Vasari added this event because it shows the magnitude of what Michelangelo’s rivals would do to try to hinder his success. It also illustrates how much the Pope trusted in his skill and saw value in everything he ordered him to do. Furthermore, the scene explains how art was used and what was the norm at the time.

Not only was Michelangelo skilled as an adult, but he also nearly became a master at a young age. Another historical convention used by Vasari was how he expressed admiration for Michelangelo as he described moments in his life when Domenico trained him as a young boy. Vasari indicated that Domenico noticed that Michelangelo’s drawings excelled the skills of Domenico’s multitude of disciples. He then added that Domenico saw that Michelangelo even equaled in talent in his works of art. For example, a young man who was training under Domenico was practicing figure drawing by copying one of Domenico’s drawings. Michelangelo then saw his drawing and used a darker pen to draw over it so that he could fix the shape of the figures body in a way that would then make the drawing perfect in his eyes. Vasari admired his boldness to correct a figure drawing that was

PG. 59

created by his own master. In another similar example, Domenico was working on the S. Maria Novella chapel, while Michelangelo drew a section of the chapel with a stairs, desks, and a few people in the background. When Domenico saw the drawing he said, “this boy knows more about it than I do.” Domenico was amazed of how well he could perfectly imitate what he saw onto paper. Vasari compared his drawing to being as well done as if an experienced craftsman drew the same scene. Vasari purposefully used these stories to convey that Michelangelo showed great potential since he was a young boy.

Moreover, on several accounts, Michelangelo counterfeited other masters’ drawings so perfectly that he fooled many people; he even made his copies appear antique. He also copied other artists’ sculptures onto paper so perfectly, that it was difficult to see that it was merely a drawing done by a young boy. These events credited him and gave him the start of his fame. These stories illustrate how technical and detail oriented Michelangelo was when he worked on his artworks. Seeing that he was a great artist at a young age, in his adulthood, he became very comfortable with all his earned fame and wealth.

Another historical convention used in biographies is recounting moments where the artist used trickery or took advantage of a situation to get away with something they did not want to do. For instance, while Michelangelo was working on the Sistine Chapel

PG. 60

ceiling, since he was almost done, and the Pope had seen its progress, he showered Michelangelo with gifts and money. Michelangelo later asked the Pope if he could go to Florence for a festival. The Pope angrily asked him when he would finish the Chapel and Michelangelo yelled, “As soon as I can!” The Pope tried to get him to not go to Florence, but Michelangelo decided to go anyway because he knew that it would not matter that he temporarily upset the Pope because he knew the Pope would need him to finish the Chapel. Vasari explained that Michelangelo “saw that in the end everything turned to his profit and advantage, and that the Pontiff would do anything to keep a man such as himself as his friend.” Though Michelangelo did not use trickery, per se; however, he took advantage of his fame knowing that he would continually be commissioned for work and that the Pope would not look for anyone else to work on the Sistine Chapel. This scene illustrates the relationship between the Pope and Michelangelo. They were clearly close with each other, and though Michelangelo loved him, he knew he could get away with taking his time on certain projects.

Art Historians not only study the historical conventions, but also use the biographies to learn about what successful art entailed.

Vasari described many of Michelangelo’s works of art that can help to identify the characteristics of great art. During the sixteenth century,

PG. 61

according to Vasari, sculpture should be extremely smooth, rely on accurate proportions, and appear realistic. Additionally, throughout the biography, Vasari used the term “design” more often than “art” to describe works of art. It can be interpreted that Vasari did not see art as just imitating nature, but rather art should represent something that exceeds what can be seen by the eye in nature. Vasari thought highly of the details in figures; he points out the features in several of Michelangelo’s sculptures, such as veins, muscles, nerves, and drapery on the body of Christ or a nude figure. Art should look natural; a sculpture of a corpse should appear to be like a real corpse, yet the whole body must be in harmony with each other.

Though much of Art History is studying philosophies throughout the centuries, researching the biographies of individual artists is another important component to learning the theories of art.

Biographies usually describe the lives of famous artists who were successful because of their works of art. Thus if one studies why those works of art were prestige, then it assists to formulate some ideas of what was seen as acceptable art. Vasari recounts moments in Michelangelo’s life in order to educate the reader on his success, and to explain why in particular his works of art earned him fame and wealth.

His essay can also be used to compare how art theories of his time have

changed to the present day. Vasari wrote these biographies because he knew the value of documenting the history of art.

PG. 62

Iconog ra ph y / I c o n o lo gy R e se a r ch M e th o ds f o r t h e ‘ P ri mav e r a’

•

Ingrid B. Arvelo 2015

• PG. 63

Iconography/Iconology Research Methods for the ‘Primavera’ Many Art historians have written about the Primavera by Botticelli, and have concluded that he painted the figures on the right because of Ovid’s Fasti, and that Poliziano’s poetry also influenced his painting. However, Lew Andrews wrote his paper on the Primavera with a slightly different argument than the common theories of the painting. As one reads his paper, one can see that Panofsky’s theory of ‘reading’ an image influenced the way he researched about Primavera.

Though Panofsky first starts out by looking at the painting as a whole to see its subject matter, and then goes into its iconography, Andrews skips the first step, and instead synthesizes by using historical and textual references to strengthen his argument. As he does this, he then references the iconography throughout the paper. One can assume that he has already done step one of Panofsky’s method, and thus starts out with the iconology, while referring back to the iconography in order to point out specific figures. Andrews uses textual and historical references to research the iconography and iconology of the Primavera.

Additionally, he uses formal analysis in order to interpret the meaning behind the figures’ positions in the composition.

To begin Andrews’ argument, he uses writings of other Art Historians. First he writes about Aby Warburg and quotes Ovid’s

PG. 64

passage that Warburg uses to state his argument about the Primavera.

Warburg theorizes about the two figures on the right of the painting in comparison to Ovid’s passage. Andrews then references another Scholar who adds all three figures on the right to be correlated with Ovid’s Fasti. Andrews does this again with another writer whose theory goes a step further by saying both women on the right are Flora who are shown at different times. His argument compares most closely with the latter argument from the other scholar. Andrews then quotes a less common passage from Ovid who states, “the rites of Flora also extend to the Calends of May”,67 in order to show the correlation between Flora and the month of May. He explains that Flora’s description in the rest of the passage seems similar to how Botticelli painted her. He then connects Flora to the rites of spring. Andrews refers to the Quattrocento celebrations in Renaissance, Florence, which occur in May, as a cultural context to make sense of the relationship between Flora and spring. Andrews opens his points by using iconology to find themes in the Primavera by referring to other scholarly sources and cultural contexts.

Not only does Andrews link Flora to May, but also he quotes other passages by Ovid’s Fasti to show an important transition from

67 Lew Andrews. “Botticelli’s ‘Primavera’, Angelo Poliziano, and Ovid’s ‘Fasti’.”Artibus et Historiae 23, no. 63 (2011): 74.

PG. 65

April to May. Ovid describes the festivities to honor Flora in the passage, which begins in the end of April and extends to May. Ovid then describes what occurs in these festivities, such as dancing and giving gifts. He compares this to the Quattrocento Calendimaggio where men sang, danced, and gave flowers to their lovers. He makes these cultural comparisons to possibly understand Italy’s connection to Flora from Fasti. Andrews states, “The Primavera has sometimes been discussed in relation to the May Day celebrations in Renaissance Florence, the Calendimaggio, and since these Quattrocento festivities descend from the Floralia, Ovid’s discussion is potentially relevant as well.”68 It’s clear that the common people in Renaissance Florence had some knowledge about Primavera and the celebrations during spring.

Andrews uses the cultural and historical information about the celebrations in Florence, which were related to the Primavera, to then relate it back to Ovid, who first influenced Botticelli.

Andrews continues to use iconology to further his argument that Botticelli was influenced by Ovid’s Fasti not only for the three figures on the right, but also every figure, and the painting as a whole.

He begins by quoting Ovid Book V, to explain that the month of April was dedicated to Venus. The poet explains that Venus is to be honored and celebrated on this month. Andrews quotes Ovid again to strengthen

68

PG. 66

Ibid., 74.

his argument about how the month of April was named, which it is believed that Romulus named the month after Venus/Aphrodite.

Andrews adds another quote by Ovid, which states, “No season was more fitting for Venus than spring. In spring the landscape glistens; soft is the soil in spring…”69 He does this in order to make the connection between Venus and spring. Most scholars do not mention Venus in relation to Fasti. Thus Andrew attempts to prove that Botticelli was influenced by Ovid’s book to represent Venus in the painting, as well as the three figures on the right.

Andrews uses the Ovid passage about Venus mentioned above in order to understand the figure in Botticelli’s painting. He then uses formal analysis so that he can see the connection between her positioning and Ovid’s description of Venus. For instance, Andrews states, “She is central to the image and holds sway over the season, but also seems to draw back somewhat. While Flora seems to come forward, matching the Graces, Venus seems almost to retire into the background.”70 This also seems similar to Panofsky’s first step, preiconography, where he uses description to understand the subject matter. Andrews interprets Venus in the painting by viewing her position in the image and comparing it to her description in Fasti.

69 70

Ibid., 76.

Ibid., 76.

PG. 67

Additionally, Andrews compares Venus’ position in the painting to a Madonna. He states, “Indeed she is at or near the center, and is framed by an archway – like a Madonna in a sacra conversazione.”71 This is another method to understand the influences of paintings to one another. Andrews uses a mixture of textual reference, such as Ovid, description of the painting, and comparison to another type of painting to ‘read’ Venus’ position in the Primavera.

Furthermore, Andrews then explains the Graces in context to the painting. He explains that they are also mentioned in the Fasti, and concludes that they are linked to Venus, but can also be linked to Flora according to Ovid. He explains that they are Venus’ companions, which is why they are identified in the painting. Andrews hardly uses iconography in his article, besides when he explains the connection between the Graces and Venus. He likely does not mention iconography more because he assumes his audience has prior knowledge to this, and also the Primavera, does not have as much easily identifying images, which is part of the mystery of the meaning behind the painting.

Mercury is the last figure on the left, who Andrews also argues plays a role in Ovid’s Fasti, specifically in Books IV and V. Book V, which is associated with the month of May, mentions how the

71

PG. 68

Ibid., 76.

month of was named. Ovid explains that Mercury named it after his mother, who was named Maia. Andrews’ assumption here is that if the figure is at least mentioned in the spring section of Fasti, then it is likely that it influenced the figure in Botticelli’s Primavera. Mercury is later mentioned in Book V in relation to the festival, Lemuria, which is a day to honor the dead. Andrews refers to a scholar again to agree with their statement and connecting it back to Ovid. For instance, he states that Wind “pointed out (that) Mercury has been traditionally regarded as the one who guides souls to the beyond.”72 He uses this statement to strengthen how Mercury is connected to the dead.

Additionally, Andrews quotes another passage that connects Mercury to the Ides of May, which he admits does not exactly correlate with Botticelli’s painting, but he again is stating that Mercury is simply referenced during the Spring month of May. He states, “We can at least start with the Fasti.” For Mercury’s figure, Andrews mostly relied on iconology by using other scholarly sources and the Fasti to understand why Mercury is in a spring painting.

Andrews lastly uses historical information in order to connect the Primavera to Poliziano, who was someone who many believed influenced Botticelli through his poetry. Andrews goes a step further by explaining that Poliziano may have influenced him in more ways than

72

Ibid., 77.

PG. 69

just his poems. By proving his argument, he researched information about Poliziano, and where and when he taught. He explained that he taught courses in 1480, and in 1481 he studied Ovid’s Fasti, which was a popular read throughout Italy during the time. Andrews researched by reading manuscripts of Poliziano’s and his assistants’ notes. Andrews uses these primary sources to strengthen his argument, particularly how Mercury is associated with May. Poliziano gave more information on Mercury, and also referenced Martial and Livy, who also agreed that Mercury was associated with the Ides of May. Thus Andrews continues to use iconology to clearly explain the reasoning for each figure in the painting.

Andrews’ theory of how to understand the Primavera is to mainly research the iconology, such as scholarly sources and historical/cultural references. However, he did this after already having the prior knowledge of who the figures were identified as because of iconography. He also uses pre-iconography methods with correlation to Ovid’s Fasti to understand the positioning and composition as a whole of the painting. He assumes that through iconology and iconography, one can successfully ‘read’ the painting the way Botticelli intended.

References Andrews, Lew. “Botticelli’s ’Primavera’, Angelo Poliziano, and Ovid’s ‘Fasti.’” Artibus et Historiae 23, no. 63 (2011): 73-84.

PG. 70

Se lf Portra i t a s a S o li der: A Fr e ud i a n’ s Ps y c h o a n a ly s i s a n d Gre e nberg’ s F o rm a li s m P e r sp e ct i v e

•

Ingrid B. Arvelo 2015

• PG. 71

Self Portrait as a Solider: A Freudian’s Psychoanalysis and Greenberg’s Formalism Perspective Ernst Ludwig Kirchner’s Self Portrait as a Soldier (1915) is an abstract expressionist painting that can be theorized in different ways that can lead to similar or completely different meanings.

Psychoanalysis and Formalism are two methodologies that have different processes; yet lead to a similar idea of meaning or purpose of the painting. Freudian theory of psychoanalysis attempts to analyze the unconsciousness of the artist through his or her work. This assumes that the artist will expose his unconscious desires or fears through his paintings. By analyzing the figures in a work of art, Freud believed he could possibly psychologically analyze the artist’s repressed emotions, and reveal their desires and fears that he is unaware of. On the other hand, Formalism is an attempt to analyze a work of art as just a work of art. It assumes the elements of the painting are unified into a whole structure that creates meaning as it is viewed. Formalism does not attempt to analyze the artist, but actually removes the artist from the picture, and analyzes the components, as they work together, of the image to understand its purpose as a whole. In analyzing Self Portrait as a Soldier, one can use psychoanalysis and formalism to end at different, but similar viewpoints of the significance of the painting.

PG. 72

Ernst Kirchner painted himself wearing military uniform. His face and chest touch the boundaries of the painting. To begin psychoanalytic theory, one can start by looking at the soldier’s posture and gestures. By looking at his face, one can clearly see that the artist decided to leave out his eyes. They are completely black. This displaces the gaze, so that the soldier does not have to confront the gaze with the viewer. This forces a disconnection between him and the viewer. One can then ask, who is the viewer? Since the soldier, nor the figure in the background look out at the viewer, the spectator is likely not intended for this painting. Kirchner painted a moment in time where the primary figure, he himself, looks disconnected from the world. It is as if the figure did not know there was a spectator in the room. The painting thus lacks a focalizer because none of the figures draw the viewer in with their eyes. The lack of painted eyes could reveal a conflict within the artist. He may have trouble with discovering his identity. The eyes are commonly a way to identify a person, or look “into their soul”.

Either Kirchner tries to repress the possibility of being exposed to society, or he is unsure of his own identity.

Furthermore, the primary figure’s gesture dramatically reveals the cut-off hand, which can be connected to the idea of castration.

Castration is also linked to fear of something and/or loss of his manhood. Kirchner could thus be fearful of going to war because he is

PG. 73

also dressed in military clothing. His fear of war could lead his unconsciousness to imagine him injured, such as losing a hand.

Furthermore, the castration of the hand could be linked to fear of not being manly or tough enough to go into battle.

The nude figure in the background faces Kirchner. His body appears androgynous, which can signify an “unstable sense of self” and also again, linked to castration.73 From the painting, it seems as though the figures are in a room with three walls (the fourth being added by the spectator). It appears as though there is an abstract expressionist painting behind Kirchner, possibly another painting he was working on.

Thus, the figure may signify a displaced sense of self for Kirchner, as a man that does not know if he is man enough, where he tries to repress those emotions of confusion and uncertainty.

Additionally, Kirchner represented in his painting the conflict of two different lives that he had to try to work together. These two lives include, his life as a painter, and also his life as a soldier, which could represent his responsibilities and duties to his community.

Kirchner may fear the possibility of failure to fulfill his responsibilities to the community and those around him, which thus is a fear of castration, or loss and death. Men are encouraged and are assumed to

73 Lois Tyson, “Psychoanalytic Criticism,” Critical Theory Today (New York: Taylor & Francis Group, 2006), 16.

PG. 74

have control, stability, power, and confidence. The pressures to maintain these responsibilities as a man can prove to be too much anxiety for Kirchner to handle. Kirchner also added a cigarette in his mouth, which leads the viewer to focus on his mouth. His mouth may not literally be sexualized but the mouth can be associated with sex organs, which guides one back to the nude ambiguous figure. The ambiguity, fear, and loss are themes in this painting that are associated with the loss of the intimacy with the mother during childhood. After a child experiences this loss, the child goes through a transitional phenomenon, where he replaces the loss with something else to repair his unstable emotions.74 Kirchner replaced this through the act of painting, as one can see he likely is in the middle of painting something on a canvas on the left side of the painting. This fear of loss and necessity to replace it is linked to loss of identity or confusion of his perceived identity to those around him and himself. This painting expresses repressed emotions that Kirchner likely felt at some point in his life.

Another way of looking at this painting is through a formalist perspective. One starts off by looking at a formal analysis of the painting. The image shows Kirchner dressed in uniform in a room with

Anne D’Alleva, “New Criticism,” Methods and Theories of Art History (London: Laurence King Publishing, 2012), 95.

74

PG. 75

a nude figure behind him, yet adjacent to him. Kirchner has a hand cut off and does not have eyes with any definition. This is an abstract expressionist painting, thus the paint strokes are visibly obvious. The strokes create harsh shapes, especially around Kirchner’s face.

Kirchner painted dark circles near his eyes. His eyebrows are dark and thick, but they do not reveal a potential expression on his face. The nude figure appears male until one looks at his waist, which seems to appear either feminine-like, or lack of any genitals. The color palette for the painting is dirty yellows, reds, navy blue, and black.

The choice of placing the figures next to each other, while still implying that one is in front of the other may hold significance. The nude figure faces Kirchner, while Kirchner himself “looks” (he has no eyes) out beyond the viewer. One may ask, what is the relationship between the figures? The nude figure could be a model that Kirchner is in the middle of painting. It seems as though he is in a room with a painting on the wall of the left side. Another question one may then ask is why is the nude figure possibly androgynous? Kirchner did not completely define what sex this individual is. This figure represents ambiguity in Kirchner’s life. There are multiple possible viewpoints that one can use for the nude figure. This adds complexity to the painting.

PG. 76

Moreover, the figures do not communicate with one another in any blunt way. However, the nude figure is also missing eyes. This could mean that Kirchner did not want to identify neither himself, nor the nude figure. There seems to be tension in the room, through the color choices and the style of painting. The dirty yellow shades represent illness, anxiety, and uncertainty. Kirchner left his self-portrait with a blank face. The figure does not reveal his emotions through his face, thus he is likely trying to hide his feelings, but fails to do so, because of the signifiers in the painting.

These signifiers are shown through the style of the painting.

The primary figure has an exaggerated facial structure that is neither completely abstract, nor completely natural. His nose, lips, and eyes are rigid, with sharp edges. There seems to be no natural flow in the face.

This can represent stress that the primary figure experiences. He attempts to take control of his emotions by repressing them through a lack of expression, but stylistically, these emotions are hinted towards.

Additionally, the absence of the hand appears to have been recently cut off because of the fleshy red hue and the greenish-yellow hue around the skin. The severed hand represents his fear of going to war, since some people who fight in war may experience an amputated limb. The cigarette in his mouth could help him control the stress and tension that he feels from the idea of fighting in battle.

PG. 77

The tone of the painting is overall gloomy and melancholy.

The brush strokes also signify the harsh realities of having to interrupt his life as a painter, and possibly forced to fight in the war. Though Kirchner chose to remove the eyes, he used perspective so that the viewer is still invited into the painting. The viewer can then imagine the room that he is in and is invited to experience what he experiences. The conflicting emotions of inviting the viewer in, yet attempting to cover his emotions with a lack of a facial expression gives the painting complexity. Additionally, the attitude of the painting is negative; the dark circles near his eyes reveal anxiety and stress about something in the figure’s life. Overall, the painting suggests a multiplicity of emotions and possible realities of the figures. These different viewpoints give the painting a complexity of meaning.

Both methodologies reveal the negative emotions that the painting expresses through either the color scheme, the gestures of the figures, their expressions, or the key signifiers, such as the uniform, the nude, the severed hand, or the lack of eyes. However, psychoanalysis attempts to go deeper by analyzing the subconscious intentions of the artist, while formalism analyzes the features of the image and the relationships to one another that create a meaning together. There is an organic unity that is assumed in the image by formalism where the meaning and purpose of the painting can be determined (though it may

PG. 78

be different than what the artist intended). On the other hand, the meaning of the painting, for psychoanalysis, will help one understand the emotions and repressions of the artist on a personal level.

References D’Alleva, Anne. “New Criticism,” Methods and Theories of Art History, 95. London: Laurence King Publishing, 2012.

Tyson, Lois. “Psychoanalytic Criticism,” Critical Theory Today, 16.

New York: Taylor & Francis Group, 2006.

PG. 79

PG. 80

The Innoce n t E y e Tes t t h ro ug h t he l e ns o f P la t o ’ s t h eo ry

•

Ingrid B. Arvelo 2015

• PG. 81

The Innocent Eye Test through the lens of Plato’s theory Mark Tansey’s The Innocent Eye Test is an intriguing painting that can be analyzed through many methods. The painting shows three men on the left who have just removed the drapery over the painting.

The painting within the painting reveals two cows, one lying down and the other standing, looking back out at the viewer. The two men on the right, one man wears a white lab coat, take notes as they observe the ‘live’ cow that behaves as the spectator of the painting of the cows.

What observations are the men looking for? How will the cow react, if it has not already done so? The men appear to be testing Plato’s theory of truth and imitation. I will argue that the men in the painting are applying Plato’s theory by observing the reaction of the cow, and testing if the representation of an image can trick the spectator.

Plato valued the importance of truth; he saw the earthly world as the second level of forms, where the highest form of ideas and things existed in a higher ideal realm. Thus, worldly things are imperfect. The third level of forms existed as imitations, such as painting, which is the lowest form. This form had the ability to make people lose sight of what the true form is, and what is simply a representation of it. Thus, Plato was against imitation because it did not reveal the true essence of the thing. In the Republic, Plato stated, “Why, between ourselves—for

PG. 82

you will not betray me to the tragic poets and all other imitators—that kind of art seems to be a corruption of the mind of all listeners who do not possess as an antidote a knowledge of its real nature.”75Tansey is a painter who painted the appearance of things that do not represent reality, but are merely an image. Tansey represented this concept within the painting as well. The spectator of the painting, The Innocent Eye Test, must have the knowledge of reality, according to Plato.

Within the painting, the men observe the cow spectator to see if she comprehends reality. The painting of the two cows was painted realistically to represent the natural forms of the cows. The spectator cow stares into the painting, possibly acknowledging what the painting represents.

According to this painting, Plato could have been right about trickery because the ‘real’ cow is looking straight at the painting with a purposeful stance, where as she could have been looking down or around unaware of the situation. Instead, she stands with her two front legs standing firm, and her back legs almost walking up to the painting, as if she is curious about what she sees. However, though the cow seems intrigued, it is difficult to say what exactly she sees; she may just see shapes and color with no comprehension of the representation of cows, or she possibly recognizes the species as her own. Also, since the

75

Plato, “The Republic,” selection from Book X, Trans. Edith Hamilton, et al. The Collected Dialogues of Plato (Princeton: Princeton UP, 1961): 820.

PG. 83

painting is a snapshot in time, we do not know if the cow walks closer up to the painting as if it were reality, and we know that if she did, she would bump into the canvas. Thus, Plato’s theory is intriguing when observing the cow, however, the full reaction of the cow is left unknown.

On the other hand, the men in the painting prove Plato’s theory to be false. They clearly acknowledge the painting to just be a painting. Therefore, they have the prior knowledge of reality to decipher what is reality and what is an imitation. Two men hold the canvas while the others observe the cow. They understand that they are testing the knowledge and awareness of the cow, assuming themselves to be higher than the cow because of their awareness of the canvas as imitation.

The last spectator of the painting is the true viewer, which is you, me or anyone who sees it. The viewer understands the painting to be an imitation of a possible reality. It does not mean that what the painting reveals has actually occurred, but the figures in the painting are painted anatomically correct to possibly represent a moment in history. Tansey could have also rearranged the painting in this way to communicate a message to the viewer. This message encourages viewers to question what painting really is, and if it can mislead the viewer. Tansey uses exaggeration by placing a real cow in a museum

PG. 84

(or some gallery, since there is another painting on the right) in order to get the message across that images have the power to deceive people.

This could have been his blunt way of getting people to discuss this matter, or he possibly found Plato’s theory silly.

According to the Plato, images were useless because they were not functional, and thus had no value. Not only this, but if a figure is represented in a negative light, it also can mislead people to believe something about the figure represented that possibly is not true. The painter, poet, or carpenter may have too much power because they can represent anything as they wish, even though the essence of the thing has a perfect form. The artist can thus represent the essence of the thing in a negative light with or without knowing it, thus leading people away from the truth of the thing.

The cow may or may not literally have been tricked by the painting, and the men may not have been tricked to believe that the painting is reality, however, the viewer of The Innocent Eye Test may be deceived to believe that this moment actually occurred, which is still trickery. The viewer understands that the painting is merely a canvas, but what the canvas reveals might be an event that can lead people to believe certain things about the cow or the men. For instance, the viewer could be lead to think that cows can recognize their own species in a painting, or that cows are allowed to visit museums. These ideas

PG. 85

may seem silly, but in the literal sense, it is easy to get this idea from the painting without true knowledge of reality.

Tansey applied Plato’s theory of truth and trickery in imitation in his The Innocent Eye Test. The painting reveals a ‘live’ cow observing a painting of two cows looking back at her. The men involved watch the cow and take notes during this experiment. The men take a literal approach in testing Plato’s theory; nonetheless, the painting keeps us on our toes as we wait to see how the cow reacts to the imitation.

Reference Plato, “The Republic,” selection from Book X, Trans. Edith Hamilton, et al. The Collected Dialogues of Plato (Princeton: Princeton UP, 1961): 820.

PG. 86

PG. 87