Gazing at the Moon: Artist s depictions of the moon across time by Caroline Maxwell Art 105 May 2017
This exhibit will take place at the Griffith Park Observatory. The observatory has ample exhibition space, and would be able to host nightly moon viewings through its telescope in conjunction with the art exhibition.
Prehistoric - Venus of Laussel 25,000 B.C.E. limestone Musée d'aquitaine, Bordeaux, France This small relief-carved sculpture depicts a female figure holding what appears to be a bison horn in one hand. This relates to the moon in a subtle way if you look closely, the horn is crescent-shaped and has thirteen notches on it, just as the moon has thirteen cycles of the year. The figure (while not actually Venus, resembles the many female fertility figures found throughout the Prehistoric world. The connection between the moon cycles and female fertility is clear in this small figurative sculpture.
Ancient Egyptian Two Baboons Offering the Wedjat Eye to the Sun God Khepri, Who Holds the Underworld Sign 330 B.C. Carved Limestone Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian god Thoth, is sometimes depicted as a baboon. Full moon circles appear over their heads. Baboons were associated with the moon as they were nocturnal animals, and they would go to sleep every morning at sunrise. Likewise, the Lunar god Thoth would greet the Sun god every morning, as depicted here.
Ancient Greece Artemis Pouring Libation 450 B.C.E. White-ground lekythos The Louvre Museum This white ground lekythos depicts the Greek goddess Artemis pouring a ritual libation. Artemis is the goddess of the hunt, and is also associated with the moon. In this depiction she is shown wearing a lunette topped headdress and she is joined by her faithful hunting dog.
Ancient Near East Nabonidus praying to the Moon, Sun, and Venus 556-539 B.C.E. carved stone British Museum This fragment from a carved stele shows the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire praying to celestial deities. appartently, the moon god Sin was his favorite, and Nabonidus gave special attention to Sîn's temple in Harran, and his own mother may have been a priestess of the moon god as well.
Galileo Galilei Drawings of the Moon November-December 1609 ink on paper Florence, Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale These ink paintings show the moon as Galileo observed it through one of the first telescopes in 1609. They are the first realistic illustrations of the moon and all of its details in history. it is seen that the Moon is most evidently not at all of an even, smooth and regular surface, as a great many people believe of it and of the other heavenly bodies, but on the contrary it is rough and unequal similar, but much larger, to the mountains and valleys spread over the Earth s surface.
Late Classic Maya Seated Moon Goddess 600 900 C.E. clay Yale University Art Museum This small figure most likely depicts a moon goddess, she is holding a child in her arms and is usually depicted as the patron goddess of female fertility and childbirth. This sculpture was used as a grave offering, and was discovered on Jaina Island, Campeche, Mexico.
Nicholas Poussin Selene and Endymion 1630 Oil on canvas Detriot Institute of the Arts Selene was the Greek Goddess of the Moon, (Also known as Artemis) and the twin sister of Apollo, the Sun God. This painting shows Selene on one of her nightly visits to her love, the eternally youthful Endymion.
Henri Rousseau The Sleeping Gypsy 1897 Oil on canvas Museum of Modern Art Henri Rousseau was a self-taught artist. His works display a dream-like, visionary quality and are admired for their lyrical and poetic stillness. This painting shows a nocturnal moon-lit scene which best exemplifies the unique atmosphere of the artist s work.
Vincent Van Gogh Evening Landscape with Rising Moon 1889 Oil on canvas Kröller-Müller Museum This painting by Van Gogh was once thought to depict the sunrise, but it has been proven by astronomers to actually depict the moonrise on July 13, 1889. At this time, we know that Van Gogh was interested in depicting various nocturnal scenes, even writing to his brother about this fascination: "One of the most beautiful things by the painters of this century has been the painting of DARKNESS that is still COLOR."
Ansel Adams Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico 1941 Gelatin Silver Print New Mexico Museum of Art This image is one of Adams most popular photographs. Adams printed over 1,300 copies of this photo during his lifetime, and one of those prints recently auctioned for $609,000. Adams took the shot while on a road trip with his son, and he describes the urgency with which he had to work in order to time the lighting and composition of the shot. Of this image, he says, Some may consider this photograph a "tour de force" but I think of it as a rather normal photograph of a typical New Mexican landscape. Twilight photography is unfortunately neglected; what may be drab and uninteresting by daylight may assume a magnificent quality in the half-light between sunset and dark.