Anguished Figure Analysis

The anguished figure: my first impression of this title is severe pain and suffering exposed by artists in their work, who are trying to highlight the veracity of the human mind. Significantly, they are trying to underline and mark in history the reality into an ‘anguished figure’, by emphasising facial expressions and body language in their pieces of art work; to bring awareness upon this profound topic. This exploration will highlight how my three chosen artists: Kathe Kollwitz, Michelangelo and Annemarie Busschers create artefacts that reflect my theme in different ways, based on their personal perceptions and ideas. This means of expression, is highly important in the ‘art world’ as it is unique, distinctive and relatable however really
Michelangelo sculpted Mary holding her dead son in a very calm and ‘introspective’ manner. Technically this is very different to how Busschers expressed her idea of an ‘anguished figure’, as firstly it is a three dimensional figure which creates a stronger existence of a realistic situation rather than Busschers mixed media paintings/drawings. Also Busschers mastered a typically ‘anguished’ expression while Michelangelo opted for a pure calm look. Reasoning behind why Michelangelo portrayed Mary emotionless and untouched by the tragedy was to depict her still mothering her child, regardless of the tragedy. It was their last moment physically together and this was shown by how Jesus remains gripping his mother’s gown as she holds him securely in the palm of her hands. During the Renaissance, multi- figured sculptures were rare and so was the situation of ‘utter sadness and devastation’ being ‘enveloped in graceful acceptance’. Michelangelo’s idea of an ‘anguished figure’ wasn’t necessarily typical as he witnessed his dying mother which may have triggered his thoughts. Besides all the hurt and emotions, Michelangelo realised that he was still the son of his mother, regardless if she was dying. Due to her illness, Michelangelo was sent to live with stonecutters. This is may have influenced his career as he was born into a family in the banking business. He
The ‘scratch-like hatch marks, creating tension and a sense of desperation’ is a recurring technique used by Kollwitz and Busschers. It is believed that Kollwitz suffered from a neurological disorder called ‘Alice in wonderland syndrome’ commonly linked with hallucinations and anxiety which may have been caused by the childhood experience of losing her siblings. Generally, these artists are triggered by childhood memories that haunt them and influence their passion, ideas and genre of art work. Kollwitz’s condition can be distinctively associated with her art work as her grief is voiced in the figures facial expressions. An author Carl Zigrosser wrote a summary on Kollwitz and explained that ‘these records do not stem from a superficial narcissism but from frank self-appraisal: they are psychological milestones’. This clearly suggests that her prints tell a story and a journey that Kollwitz experienced and her art work was a coping mechanism. Another author described her prints as ‘transparent’ and that one cannot gaze at her work without having a ‘glimpse into her inner nature’. This also suggests that her work expressed depth and emotion which related to most spectators.

An interesting discovery within my research was the revelation that all my chosen artists had a sexuality barrier during their lives. A fundamental element to Michelangelo art is the love of male beauty which attracted him not