Mid-Morning Art Thread [Kris]

Boxer at Rest
Apollonius of Athens

Note: Being a three-dimensional medium, sculpture is difficult to appreciate properly in a two-dimensional format. This essay is my best effort with this limitation.
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Boxer at Rest comes from an era of art history known as Hellenism which spans the centuries between the death of Alexander the Great and the Rome’s conquest of Greece. During these centuries, the Greek world expanded beyond its peninsular homeland into modern day Turkey, the Middle East, and north Africa. The innovations of Classical Greek art — idealism, naturalism, and heroic beauty — were mixed with realism and drama. Art, especially figurative art, became more grounded with more down-to-earth subject matter. Humanity was even added to images of the gods.

Unearthed in Rome in the late 19th century, Boxer at Rest is a masterpiece of ancient bronzeworking. Bronze was a much sought-after medium for Greek artists because of its durability and moldability. Marble, the medium we now tend to associate with classical sculpture, is fragile and unforgiving. It can fracture easily and has weak spots that must be braced with struts and supports. Bronze is different. If a mistake is made, the figure can be melted down and the metal reused. Statues are hollow and free-standing, able to mimic the human body better than stone. Unfortunately, many bronzes have been lost to history and works like Boxer at Rest are rare. A large amount of the “ancient Greek art” seen today in museums are marble Roman copies of Greek bronze originals.

The figure in this work is of a defeated boxer resting after a bout. He sits exhausted, with slouched shoulders. He hasn’t even taken off his leather hand-straps (himantes) yet. His arms lay weightlessly in his knees and his legs stretch out asymmetrically. He’s exhausted. His head turns to an extreme angle to his right as though listening to someone behind him — a manager or disappointed supporter. While his limbs relax, his thick, muscular torso and shoulders are still tense.

For me, the charm of Boxer at Rest is in the details. The turned head is so real. I can envision him plopping down onto that rock after a disappointing fight when someone behind him calls out. He’s too tired to move so he only turns his head. If you zoom in on his face, the expression reflects his body language. His eyes stare and his brows are knitted. I can see him panting through his partially open mouth. His face and ears are deeply scarred. Some wounds are fresh. They are still bleeding. The nose is broken, the left cheek is swelling, and his ears are cauliflowered. To add to the realism, copper is added to the cuts to mimic blood. He also likely had eyes to complete the lifelikeness.

Classical Greek art was about the ideal — the best and most beautiful, about the perfection of the human figure. This meant a work was a flawless, unemotional, godlike figure in the nude to display the full beauty of the male human form. With Hellenism, that beauty was seen and celebrated in the common human. This is not a god. Sure, this boxer is strong, muscular, and tough but he’s also highly expressive. He is gassed, sad, and disappointed. You don’t see this emotionalism in Classical art. I can feel this work.

posted by Open Blogger at 09:30 AM

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