Medusa. Germany, ca.1900

Medusa. Germany, ca.1900
Sculpture in carved stone, lead snakes.
Mounted on iron base.
Measurements: 54 x 35 x 26 cm; 63 cm (height with base).

This sculpture presents a gorgon in a morphology that oscillates between serenity and restrained tension. Its half-open mouth and closed eyelids convey the impression of a creature petrified in an eternal sleep. The soffit that surrounds it, worked with fine reliefs, acts as an architectural frame that underlines the decorative condition of the piece. The use of lead to model the snakes introduces an aesthetic counterpoint. The material allows for sinuous lines through metallic assemblies.

At the crossroads between historicism and symbolism that characterizes turn-of-the-century Germany, this Medusa reinterprets the classical repertoire. The piece fits into the German symbolist aesthetic climate of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a period in which mythological themes were reinterpreted with romantic sensibility and, at times, with traits anticipating Jugendstil. The relatively naturalistic fleshing of the face and the compositional economy are consistent with workshop productions destined for the decorative market of the bourgeoisie or for equipping public or private gardens and fountains.