The ancient world as Art Deco through the eyes of Paul Manship
I've been doing more background research on depictions of the myth of Actaeon in Pompeii and elsewhere and stumbled across this pair of sculptures of Artemis and Actaeon produced by American artist Paul Manship. Although I personally prefer the realism of Hellenistic art, I'm still pleased to see modern art inspired by ancient history and myth as it serves as a reminder of the foundations of our culture. These sculptures reflect this American artist's love of art history and classical themes in particular. The hunter Actaeon surprises the goddess Diana while she was bathing. To prevent him from telling anybody that he has seen her naked, the goddess fires an arrow that turns him into a stag. In the sculpture, Actaeon appears to have been just hit, with his metamorphosis into a stag just beginning, while the accompanying piece shows Diana with her bow raised. In this way, Manship created a link between the two sculptures through the flight of an unseen arrow. Paul Manship, ...