Portrait Project: Task 2, Easter Research

Materials, Techniques and Processes

Aphrodite ‘Venus de Milo’, By Alexandros of Antioch

Late 2^nd century BC

The statue is believed to be of the Greek Goddess of love and beauty Aphrodite/Venus. It is crafted from marble, slightly larger than life size at 203 cm (6 ft 8 in) high. Its arms and original plinth have been lost. The statue is made from marble, and it is said there is evidence that the right arm would have crossed the torso with the hand rested on the knee. And that there is a filled hole below one of the breast where a metal tendon would have supported a separately carved arm.

Alison Lapper, By Marc Quinn

2005

This statue occupies the fourth plinth at Trafalgar square, or did for a time at least.  This statue is also made of marble. The sculpture is of a British artist, Alison lapper, who was born with no arms are non-developed legs. She has used the ‘Venus de Milo’ as an inspiration in her life.

When it comes down to contrasting materials of these two pieces they do not really differ, they are both made from marble. Some differences in the techniques and process’ may be quite prominent however. The fact that the ‘Venus de Milo’ was intended to have arms and to stand in a position that would show of female beauty, the sculpture of Alison Lapper is as it was intended. The sculpture is complete as it should be and is missing no parts, unlike in the ‘Venus de Milo’ where metal rods were to hold up heavy separate pieces in the Lapper statue there are none.

It would seem to me that the artist of the ‘Venus de Milo’ was venerating a goddess of the era, showing of feminine grace and beauty, however with a relatively stern expression of a goddess, who by very definition would judge those she gazed upon.

Whereas the Alison lapper sculpture drew inspiration from the ‘Venus de Milo’ itself, and physically recording a real woman who was unfortunate enough to have a serious problem, But trying to show that this does no phase her. She is sat straight, with her neck up and her facial expression affirms her as an equal, not to be treated as less because of that which afflicts her and that beauty comes in many forms.