Night (La Nuit)

Truly, little things come close to the beautiful combination of art, silence, and fall weather!! 

Luckily, the other day I came across a short reflection I had written a couple years ago about a piece at the Nasher Sculpture Center. haha, It provided enough of an excuse to revisit the garden, take a little break from things, and spend the afternoon in the arts district.

I took a couple of photographs to accompany the mentioned reflection.

Hope you have a wonderful start to your week!!

May peace always be with you,

Teresa :) 

May 1, 2008

Aristide Maillol’s bronze cast of Night (La Nuit) is not only a wonderful expression of the human form, but it instills a peace of equal splendor. In observing the multiple perspectives of the piece, I began imagining the artist standing near- guiding my eye over the smooth expression of the piece.  It is an incredible experience of having one’s view attain unity with the artist’s hand at some past point in time when he was first bringing the human form into being.  As a viewer, such a following was not imagined to interrogate the artist for a hidden message. Rather, such a reflection was entered into for the purpose of simply allowing the piece to awaken those familiar sentiments of the heart.  In this following, emotions of contemplation and pure joy were revisited. 

Following the lines of the piece I began to think of the theme of nakedness often found in art and literature. Many times when one thinks of nakedness, one tends to examine a heightened awareness towards exposure and vulnerability.  But with this figure of the young woman, the exposure seems to contribute to a beautiful sense of serenity.  Just as signified in the title Night, I believe this to be a retreat from the outside world. No longer facing the constraints, contingencies, limitations, and expectations of the outside world, she withdraws from all judgment. What is left after all the weight of the world is abandoned is her raw existence- the ‘nakedness’.  Rather than attempting to flee this state of being, I believe that she’s embracing that.  No longer battling what could be different, or what should be done; she is cast into an everlasting state of content, serene, self-examination.