Thursday, 6.17: Standing Up or Lying Down?

Metro Strike Day 2:

I had not yet encountered a multi-day Metro strike, but this was officially the second day in what would appear to be a 2 day Metro strike, with a part day complete transportation strike. Luckily, as per usual on Thursdays, I did not have to go to work, so I decided to complete more of the List and go visit Liz at the Goulandris Museum of Cycladic Art, where she was giving tours of the Cycladic collection. "Cycladic" refers not the art of cycles but rather of the Cyclades islands, a circle of islands surrounding the holy island of Delos, and the culture associated with its inhabitants from 2800 - 2000 BCE. Most of the collection consisted of canonical or slightly deviated-from canonical figurines made of marble, which pretty much all looked like this -->

Head slightly tilted up, arms crossed left over right, knees slightly bent, and toes pointed, with few defined features except for the nose, breasts, and pubic triangle (95% of the figurines were women), features that remained unchanged for 500 years. Many theories abound to why this was, ranging from the religious (depictions of the holy goddess) to practical (mens' legs had to be carved apart, which made them more likely to break).

Of course,  there were variations on this form as well.

One pregnant (left), one with stretch marks (middle):

Even the rare dude:

There are also theories that the figures were once painted with bright colors, as evidenced by the different decay times of painted and unpainted marble (w00t science) as well as whether the figurines were meant to be displayed standing up (as they usually are in museums), or lying down (a more natural position).

As I moved through the exhibit, I found myself becoming rather attached to the elegance of the figures and it inspired a bit of the contemporary art lover in me. While I love the classics, I find myself becoming more and more interested in the quirks of modernism and post modernism. Not the single dot on a white canvas type things, but pieces like

Yeah, I'm into colors, layers, and textures. Must be why I like chemistry. :)

~~

Eventually, the heat of the day got to me and I fell asleep for 3 hours after returning to the apartment. The answer to the title then, is obviously, Lying Down. Must remember to continuously drink water next time I go out.

But another item crossed off:

17. Find another intern at work.

which means I have officially completed 25% of the List. Yay numbers. :)

Artsy in Athens,

Angela