Saturday, July 2, 2011

Miraculous Artistry

This carved wood relief at the Getty really took my breath away. Full sized and carved from a block of limewood by Aubert-Henri-Joseph Parent in Paris, 1789, the thickness of each petal and leaf is the real-life equivalent. You can practically smell the lilac!

The lower half is unfortunately as realistic, ahhhh snakes! This allegory, as so much else at the Getty from the time period, portrays the birds (aristocracy) protecting their feathered nests from the snakes (revolutionaries). I suppose we know who won and now we enjoy the fruits of the snakes' labor as so many of the aristocrat's belongings are now in the hands of museums such as the Getty; very...mixed...feelings.
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11 comments:

  1. Renée FinbergJuly 2, 2011 at 8:50 AM

    s,
    this is amazing.
    i would love to see this in person.

    i hope this comment finds you well.
    come and see today's post
    on a fine miami home builder.
    i would love to know who the architect is.

    xx

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  2. BlueJuly 2, 2011 at 10:17 AM

    Exquisite, Stefan! That alone is worth a trip to the Getty. Do you know of Grinling Gibbons? We saw an exhibition of his carvings, including the "lace" cravat which was just wonderful. At the Swan House, (Philip Schutze) here in Atlanta, there is a delightful carving above the library fireplace in the style of Gibbons.

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  3. KarenaJuly 2, 2011 at 10:31 AM

    Stefan It is indeed gorgeous, I try to imaging the artist painstakingly devotion to realism in this kind of art.

    At least it is at the Getty, where it can be enjoyed by many..

    xoxo
    Karena
    Art by Karena

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  4. Reggie DarlingJuly 2, 2011 at 10:56 AM

    I am enjoying this series of your California trip immensely. I haven't been to Los Angeles for ages (my favorite hotel there is the Bel Air), and now I am mad to go. I haven't been to the Getty since it was expanded from the Roman villa, which struck me as rather kitsch when I visited it years ago (more like a guilty pleasure, actually). These interiors are amazing! Reggie

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  5. Hill Country House GirlJuly 3, 2011 at 9:10 AM

    No words to describe how incredible this work is. Art like this takes my breath away. Can you even imagine being able to create something like that?! Thanks for sharing.

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  6. quintessenceJuly 3, 2011 at 4:41 PM

    Absolutely exquisite!! This reminds me that I must order the book!!

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  7. ThombeauJuly 3, 2011 at 6:31 PM

    Pretty damn amazing!

    By the way, come visit my new home. It's casually pretentious. I think you'll like it!

    xoxo
    Thom

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  8. Mark D. RuffnerJuly 3, 2011 at 6:56 PM

    An amazing work of art, all the more amazing because it has survived all these years without damage!!

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  9. Design ElementsJuly 5, 2011 at 8:13 AM

    beyond wonderful!

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  10. pve designJuly 8, 2011 at 9:08 PM

    Just stunning!
    pve

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  11. Patrick DamiaensJuly 30, 2011 at 6:55 AM

    Very great carving ! Love his work .

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