Exploring the Essence of Simplicity: 'Cycladic Art' Exhibit at The Met Museum
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is currently hosting a significant exhibit, 'The Leonard N. Stern Collection on Loan from the Hellenic Republic,' showcasing a remarkable collection of Cycladic antiquities. This exhibition marks the first public initiative resulting from a new memorandum of cooperation between the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens and the Greek Ministry of Culture.
The Cycladic civilization, spanning from 2700 BCE to 2300 BCE, is represented through masterpieces that delve into the role of women in Cycladic island societies, offering a unique perspective on prehistory to the 19th century. The exhibit sets a new standard for Greek museology with extensive scholarly contributions and photographic documentation.
The collection features 161 pieces, primarily made of marble, that were discovered on the Cyclades, a scattering of close-knit islands in Greece. Many of these sculptures are of women, standing with their arms crossed over their midsection, and have an expressionless face, the only discernible feature being their wedge-shaped noses.
The sculptures from the Early Cycladic I period, known as the Grotta-Pelos, resemble guitars or violins. The exhibit also showcases polychromy, the use of color on sculpture, although most of the pigmentation has faded or been scrubbed off over time.
The exhibit is the largest collection of Cycladic works in America and will remain for the next 25 years. It offers valuable insights into the construction of the sculptures and their influence in both ancient and modern times, including the impact on artists such as Pablo Picasso and Amedeo Modigliani.
The sculptures were initially plundered and treated as objects of great affection instead of scientific artifacts. However, their rediscovery in the 19th and early 20th century brought on a renewed interest in Greek history. The sculptures from the Keros-Syros culture, spanning from 2700 BCE to 2300 BCE, contain the most influential forms of Cycladic Art.
The exhibit is housed in the Greek and Roman Galleries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, showcasing periods of Cycladic Art, including the Bronze Age and the Keros-Syros culture. Despite the lack of documentation and the fact that the culture did not have writing, many scholars believe that the sculptures suggest a religious ceremonial importance or non-funerary context.
The evolution of the sculptures from abstraction to anthropomorphization back to abstraction follows the islands they were found on. The exhibit offers an opportunity to appreciate and learn about this fascinating period in history.
[1] "The Leonard N. Stern Collection on Loan from the Hellenic Republic at the Metropolitan Museum of Art." Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2021. https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2021/the-leonard-n-stern-collection-on-loan-from-the-hellenic-republic
[2] "The Museum of Cycladic Art." The Museum of Cycladic Art, 2021. https://www.cycladic.gr/en/
- The exhibition 'The Leonard N. Stern Collection on Loan from the Hellenic Republic' at the Metropolitan Museum of Art presents a remarkable collection of Cycladic antiquities, featuring 161 pieces, primarily made of marble, discovered on the Cyclades.
- The large collection of Cycladic works in America offers valuable insights into the history, culture, and art of the Cycladic civilization, which spanned from 2700 BCE to 2300 BCE, and offers a unique perspective on prehistory to the 19th century.
- The exhibit displays the evolution of the sculptures made during the Cycladic period, from abstraction to anthropomorphization, offering a comprehensive overview of the development of the Cycladic Art.
- The exhibit's cultural significance extends across various fields, impacting not only the history and archaeology, but also art, photography, literature, and lifestyle, as it showcases the influence of Cycladic Art on modern artists like Pablo Picasso and Amedeo Modigliani.
