Believe it or not, this statue depicts the first President of the United States, George Washington. Strange, right? Located at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, the George Washington Statue, 1841 is not a common representation of Washington.
Art renderings of Washington usually look like this, or even this, or one of my personal favorites, like this. Seeing Washington in this pose and toga seems inappropriate rather than classic, as the artist and Congress may have intended in the 1840s. Perhaps future generations will judge this sculpture differently and appreciate its more classic references instead of desiring a more realistic depiction of this founding father.
definitely a metaphorical representation--i just don't see GW as being ripped... :)
ReplyDeleteits wierd because it was modeled after different religions at the time.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baphomet
@anonymous
ReplyDeleteIt's more likely that this is a reference to roman and early christian art, like christ in majesty.
The nature of the sculpture is pretty well documented. It reflected the Greek and Roman democratic roots of the Republic. It is also very similar to representations of Socrates if you look at classical art. Yes, it was hidden away because it was not well received at the time.
ReplyDeleteIt's clearly the Eliphas Levi Baphomet pose.
ReplyDelete