( 5 reviews )
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Posted: Dec 31 2008
If you have been one of the thousands of visitors that pass before the Venus de Milo in the Louvre everyday, you may have asked yourself, what makes this one statue special? After all, there are thousands of statues in hundreds of famous as well as provincial museums that to the untutored eye seem no different. I bought this book to answer this question. It turns out that what is conclusively known about the statue can be expressed in two well-thought out sentences. I won't give it away here, but what then is in this book? In a nutshell, lots of politics. The book describes the circumstances of the statue's discovery. As soon as it was discovered, the Venus became embroiled in controversy. Following the defeat of Napoleon the French were anxious to have a great prize to boost their national pride. The English had the Elgin marbles from the Parthenon. The Italians had the Apollo Belvedere (looted from Italy by Napoleon and at the time recently returned). Any old statue would not do for the French. To be a world-class masterpiece, it had to date from the classical period of Ancient Greece, i.e. from the 4th or 5th century BC, preferably attributable to a Praxiteles, Lysippus or Phidias. The statue that we have is nothing of the sort. The book describes the tortuous machinations by which successive Louvre officials strove to boost the fame of the Venus. Obviously, they were successful, but in the process, the true provenance of the statue has been obfuscated. For the same reason, serious research into it has been discouraged. As Curtis states, the last important study was under taken by Salomon Reinach at the end of the 19th century. This is amazing for an artifact so famous. Compare this with the history of the Louvre's other great treasure, the Mona Lisa! In reading the book I was surprised to find no mention of modern scientific techniques which at the minimum would determine the source of the marble. The powers that be would prefer not to look too closely. That said, Curtis does make a cogent argument for the true origin of the Venus, which most readers will find satisfactory. Its appeal has stood the test of time and the scrutiny of thousands, so it hardly matters that it was carved by an obscure provincial sculptor. The conspiracy surrounding the statue notwithstanding, this is a serious book that will be interesting to art historians. It is nothing like the literature surrounding the Shroud of Turin. Readers willing to plough through the background information will be rewarded with an understanding of where the Venus de Milo came from and exactly why she is so famous. That, after all, is why I bought the book.
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( 5 of 6 found this review helpful ) Posted: Oct 18 2004
The Venus de Milo has become a symbol of great art, as well as kitsch. It has been used in advertising throughout the world because of its ease of recognition. While everybody knows the identity of the statue almost immediately, few know the story of its discovery, transport from Melos in Greece to the Louvre, and the controversy that followed. Gregory Curtis has given "flesh" to the marble by his often masterful descriptions of the actions of a few all too human men who were associated in some way with the statue after its discovery. From Voutier, who actually recognized the stature as something of value after it had been discovered by a local farmer, through d'Urville who successfully took credit for the discovery, to Reinach and Furtwängler who argued over the history of the Venus, the story is one of intrigue and curiously eccentric people. We now know the Venus was a Hellenistic rather than a classical Greek sculpture. French pride kept that truth from emerging for many years, but also it was burdened with the idea that Hellenistic art was inferior. Indeed, so set was this idea that anything of such notable merit as the Venus must have come from the studio of a great of the classic age of Greece. The inscription found with it on an associated piece that fit the base had to thus be unassociated! Wishful thinking is a hallmark of humanity! This is a well-written piece and should find readership with those who like to not only appreciate art, but to understand its history as well.
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( 6 of 7 found this review helpful ) Posted: Oct 18 2004
The Venus de Milo has become a symbol of great art, as well as kitsch. It has been used in advertising throughout the world because of its ease of recognition. While everybody knows the identity of the statue almost immediately, few know the story of its discovery, transport from Melos in Greece to the Louvre, and the controversy that followed. Gregory Curtis has given "flesh" to the marble by his often masterful descriptions of the actions of a few all too human men who were associated in some way with the statue after its discovery. From Voutier, who actually recognized the stature as something of value after it had been discovered by a local farmer, through d'Urville who successfully took credit for the discovery, to Reinach and Furtw??ngler who argued over the history of the Venus, the story is one of intrigue and curiously eccentric people. We now know the Venus was a Hellenistic rather than a classical Greek sculpture. French pride kept that truth from emerging for many years, but also it was burdened with the idea that Hellenistic art was inferior. Indeed, so set was this idea that anything of such notable merit as the Venus must have come from the studio of a great of the classic age of Greece. The inscription found with it on an associated piece that fit the base had to thus be unassociated! Wishful thinking is a hallmark of humanity! This is a well-written piece and should find readership with those who like to not only appreciate art, but to understand its history as well.
