The St. Louis Art Museum

A while ago ArtSmart visited the St. Louis Art Museum and saw many of their great sculptures, abstract art, and glass work, along with many other notable works. However, apart from looking at the individual art pieces, we were wanting to write at least one article about the great museum as a whole. It may not be as grand as the Louvre, but it still has amazing art. 

This museum was established in 1879, making one of the many museums in the eastern cities in the United States. Remember; at the time the U.S didn't have it's fifty states. "What began as a collection of assorted plaster casts, electrotype reproductions, and other examples of "good design" in various media rapidly gave way to a great and varied collection of original works of art spanning five millennia and six continents" St. Louis Art Museum (slam.org) states. This museum has tremendously grown throughout the ages and is a great way to learn about all styles of art, as well as many artists to learn about.

First, is glass work. The Lancet Redemption Window is made up of many primary colors; the primary colors consist of red, blue, and yellow. It retells the final events of Christ's life. The scenes in this glasswork piece show his ascent to heaven and his story. Another glass sculpture is called, "The Seated Maleel, Son of Cain".  This piece was constructed in the 13th century and was made using pot-metal glass, color, with the exception of the green and brown.  It represents the grandson of Adam & Eve. Stated in the title, Maleel( Son of Cain) is holding a scroll in his left hand and a showing some sort of a gesture in his right hand, under an archway. As you can probably tell both of these glass works are about Christianity. The reason is that when most of these glassworks were made they were made by artists who were Christian; however, not all glassworks are based on this religion.  

Sculptures are also a big part of this museum.  The sculptures that we will be talking about are not abstract. One sculpture is called "Reclining Pan", built in 1539, this sculpture is greek. Pan is a Greek god in mythology that is half goat and half human. He is the god of the woods, fields, and flox. He is known for playing a reed pipe. In the sculpture, pan lays back on a rock lounging around, covered in vines and grapes. In his left-hand, the figure has reed pipes. The instrument, Pan Flute, was named after the god Pan because he always carried it with.  Another magnificent sculpture is the St. Catherine Alexandria. It is a fourth-century piece of a saint admired for her learning, which the book in her right hand represents. In history, St. Catherine Alexandria was known for spreading her belief even when the Romans were persecuting all that believed in Christianity. In that time period, the Roman Empire controlled most of the western world, and when Christianity arose it started hurting the empire so it killed anyone who believed in that religion. In the end, St. Catherine was killed, which connects to why her left-hand is gripping a sword. The Bust of a Black Man was made in the 1660's by Melchior Barthes. The black marble in the piece emphasizes the African American heritage of the man. The marble contrasts with the white cloak draped around the man. This is one of the most popular representations of black African Americans in Europe during the seventeenth century. These ones are examples of the vast majority of sculptures this museum has to offer. 

While visiting we saw the Edward Degas/ Impressionism exhibit, only available in the museum for a few months. One of the paintings there was called Young Girl with a Hat by Pierre-August Renoir. The theme is pink and yellow and portrays a girl wearing a straw hat. Around the late 1800s and early 1900s, many girls had low profile ribbon hats as seen in the painting.  Little Dancer of Fourteen Years, made by Degas, created in the late 1800's.  This sculpture consists of bronze, gauze, and satin. This wax figure of a teenage ballerina, Marie van Goethem, with a bold pose, partially closed eyes, chin raised high. This realistic sculpture os wearing a muslin dress and satin colored bow, both standing out.The girl's features are occasionally described monkey-like. Bust of Emperor Caracalla was painted by Joesph Claus and made in 1757.This famous, ancient marble structure of Caracalla, a third-century Roman emperor,  is known for his chilling gaze of cruelty and use of power. These were just some of the many things that were at that exhibit. Unfortunately, this exhibit is no longer at the St. Louis art museum. If you would like to learn more about it look online about the Degas, Impressionism, and Millinery trade post pieces look them up online. You will certainly find many interesting things about them, comment what you find out.       The St. Louis Art Museum is a gorgeous museum full of many styles of art. I recommend you going there to gain your understanding of their art. Don't forget to leave a comment about what you find on the pieces of the Degas Exhibit. To learn more about art, look at our previous articles. Remeber to enter into the Monthly Competition for a chance to have your art piece on this website! Go to that page on the website to find out more. If you haven't subscribed, do so, because it gives you updates to when a new article is coming out or recent events with ArtSmart. Newer articles will be coming out so stay tuned. I hope you learned more about this museum and the type of art it has to offer. Don't forget to visit it and check out new exhibits there. 

Source: St. Louis Art Museum slam.org (WEBSITE)