What I tried to do for this project was to select historical references from different times as well as cultures, as well as symbolic meaning. I started with the beginning where the first sculptures from early Cycladic societies represent little more than the statement that they existed. The nomadic peoples of ice-age Europe idealized the feminine form (Venus of Willendorf.) Later, the Egyptians codified symbols into meaningful artforms that went unchanged for roughly three thousand years. The statue of Ramesses II represents a specific man and the symbols associated with him allowed the people of that culture to understand that he was a King, a God, a great warlord of many deeds, etc. etc. The Greek and Roman cultures used gods as allegories to represent not just the might of individuals but of their city-states. Nike was built to stand for the victorious navy of Samothrace and so glorified everyone in that town.
Now I'm going East, to other cultures that existed during these ages but had no contact with the previous societies I've borrowed from. I think it interesting that the highly sophisticated Nike was created a few hundred years before the common era, and the Great Buddha of Leshan, (although still impressive is quite simplified) was made between six and nine hundred years after. It was being built around the same time as Europe was entering the Middle Ages from which I do not have a significant source of sculptural material to draw upon.
But back to Buddha: although I wanted to stay away from religious icons, I couldn't help choosing to replicate this. It is not just the figurehead of a religion, but like Nike, it represents a virtue. Unlike Nike or anything else I've shown so far, it is not about self glorification or military prowess, it is a testement to the higher ideals of philosophy and peaceful living which the Chinese of this time chose to carve into their mountain.
