Sculpture is a form of visual art that emerged early in man's history (Janson 27). Early artists, including those of the prehistoric era, turned to stone or bone and ivory carvings to express their emotional responses to such subjects as human fertility, the vitality of the animal world, and the relationship between men and their environment (Janson 28). As man's mastery of new technologies, tools and materials increased, so did his capacity to execute sculptures that were increasingly "life-like", realistic, and representational. This brief essay will compare and contrast two sculptures created by vastly different artists - Michelangelo and Aristede Maillol - arguing that while their specific works are decidedly representative of unique world views, they both possessed a capacity to capture the essence of their subjects in a highly realistic, emotion-driven and representational manner.
Sculpture can be executed in many different mediums (Janson 127). Marble and granite or limestone, wood, bronze, and other metals - all have been used over time to create works that range in size from the miniature to the monumental. Technology certainly has shaped the medium in that as men have acquired new tools and techniques, they are able to experiment widely and to crate works that move the medium forward.
From the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, sculpture developed, according to Janson (393) as a medium that was most often associated with either religious subject matter or portraits of real or idealized figures. In the Classical era when Greece and then Rome dominated the art world, canons of sculpture were established that Michelangelo would then employ in his own much later work (Nagel 660). Born in the town of Capree in March of 1475, Michelangelo is most directly associated with the City of Florence, the Medici, and Pope Julius II, the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, and a number of famous sculptures including the Pieta (att...