Marble Statue Of Dionysos Leaning On An Archaistic Female Figure

The name of the artwork I viewed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is, Marble statue of Dionysos leaning on an archaistic female figure. The statue was created between 27 B.C to A.D 68, which was during the Augustan or Julio- Claudian period. The original artist is unknown, but Vincenzo Pacetti restored it. This artwork caught my attention because the size of the sculpture was different from other artwork in the room. The work is guiding viewers’ attention to a primary focal point, which is the bend in his left arm. There are three different aspects of the composition, which lead the viewer to the focal point. Those three aspects are the drapery directs the eyes upward; the female figure lifts her gowned, which draws the eye to his arm and
Since the gown is lifted up, the eyes are drawn to the bottom of the gown and draws back up to follow the top of the gown. The flow of the gown directs the eyes towards the focal point. When the viewer is looking at the gown, there are unnatural proportions being shown. The female figure is visually smaller than Dionysos. She is also standing on a pedestal, which also stands for, their level in society. Even when she is standing on the pedestal, she is still significantly smaller. When the viewer is looking at the female figure, the eye is drawn towards the bend of his arm. The bend in his arm shows the height of the statue and makes it look like she is providing him support. Males during this time period had more authority, power and importance in society. Females during this period did not have any authority or say in most things. These unnatural proportions are normally seen during this time period because there is a god depicted in it. Dionysos is known as the god of wine and divine intoxication (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, n.d.). Since Dionysos is a god, he was built bigger to show how much significance he had. Since she is visually smaller, it is shows that she isn’t significant compared to Dionysos. The female figure is allowing Dionysos to rest his arm on her to show support. The lines on her dress match the direction of the focal point. Her gown looks like it is
The pose of the Dionysos helps the viewer bring the attention to the focal point. The pose that Dionysos is in is called contrapposto. Contrapposto is when one part of the body is relaxed while one is stiff. His left side of the body is realized while the right side isn’t. His relaxed arm matches his leg, which created a curved line that allows the viewer to follow to the focal point. Since the female figure was portrayed as stiff and tense, it allowed a clear line to follow from Dionysos’ leg to his arm. The way both sculptures are positioned, it seems that they could be related to each other. The interaction between them is based on the pose that they are in. The pose he is standing in shows that he is relying on her for support. Even though this is the only interaction between them, the pose shows the importance of it. Dionysos might be relaxed because he has the female figure that would help him. The lines of the sculpture help define the pose. The sculpture followed a canon, which helped him create Dionysos pose to be contrapposto. The lines make it easier for the viewer to see what is going on in the sculpture and easier to find the focal point. The pose draws the eye to the focal point, which is the bend of his arm. These three aspects help guide the viewer to the focal point of the